Change!
by seraphydragon
Summary: Every day…it was the same. I was fairly certain that it would stay that way, but today…for whatever reason… "Why?" The word left my lips before my mind even registered it. AU. Some OC-ness involved.
1. That Day was Today

**A/N****: **So, umm… hi? Lol. So I've decided to take a break from my usual stuff to write this fanfic. It's my first MLGN fic, so any critique would be much appreciated. Also, since finals are coming up quick, I'm not sure when I can update again but I hope you will all enjoy this first chapter . Thanks!

**Disclaimer****: **I do **not** own MLGN in any way.

Here we go _again_. Another day of school, another day of boring class…I'm pretty sure there's a law about this or something, but that's probably why I'm forced to go to school every day. Why even bother? Every day it's the same thing. You go through the motions, do a mountain of homework, and then write a bunch of stupid tests. If that wasn't bad enough, then everyone won't shut up about how you did…

Why even bother…?

In the background I could vaguely hear my teacher's lecture. Occasionally I would see the indignant glare thrown my way, but I could hardly care less. I only heard this story a million times– I cranked up the volume on my mp3 player and continued to stare out the window. I can't wait until this day is over.

_**Briiiiiiiiiing!**_

_Finally!_ I quickly gathered my things and left.

It was dark by the time I finally got home. To my surprise, the living room lights were still on. I guess Alicia forgot to turn them off again. With a flick of my wrist, I opened the front gate and walked towards the door. I guess you could say the place we live in was a nice house; it was a decent size and, for the most part, kept tidy. But the moment I stepped on the doorstep and heard the yelling, there was that familiar sinking feeling growing in the pit of my stomach.

"I'm home." I whispered as I quietly closed the door behind me. I could hear my mother pacing around in the kitchen. She was angry again.

"Alicia! Don't you dare walk away from me!"

I saw a blur of blonde run past me and around the corner as my mother's face peered out of the doorway. I suppose you could say that she was a beautiful woman. She had long, purple hair that fell past her hips in soft, cascading waves, and dark eyes that shone brightly every time she smiled. At least, that was how I remembered her. My mother – she rarely ever smiled these days. I held my position and steadily looked back at that angry expression. Ragged, weary, and baggy eyes – in the back of my mind I knew I should have felt disturbed by her degrading appearance, but in this moment I could only stare back and await _those _words.

"Alicia!" She barked again and then approached me.

"No mom. I'm Fate."

She paused, carefully looking me over before turning on her heel and shouting for my sister who was on the run again.

Catching the silent dismissal I climbed the stairs up to my room. The moment I got there, I turned on the lights and dropped my bag by the bed. My room was kind of small, maybe even a bit cramped, but it was what I had.

I glanced to my bed and then back at my bag. Whatever desire I had to sleep earlier was just thrown out the window.

_I guess I should do my homework…_ Without even bothering to take off my jacket, I sat down at my desk and took out my books with that intention. That was, until I heard something breaking downstairs. For a brief moment I thought about going to see what it was that they broke, but a feeling in my gut told me to stay out of it. With that, I shoved two ear plugs into my ears and proceeded to immerse myself into the wonderful world of algebra.

**_Crash_!**

There was another noise, followed by a series of shouts this time.

"…_You know the rules!"_

"_Well sorry for not wanting to go blind!..."_

I could feel my brow furrowing as I tried to concentrate through the argument. But somehow, they were particularly loud today. I turned in my seat and instantly my eyes fell onto the photograph sitting atop of my dresser. In it were my mother, a man, and me and Alicia. From what I could tell, he had a kind appearance and clearly my mother had loved him. The family in the picture, they – no, _we _looked happy. But…ever since the divorce, my mother hasn't been the same. She had to raise me and Alicia all by herself.

I heard more shouting and something inside of me snapped. Dropping everything, I grabbed my mp3 player and ran out of the house.

_**Slam!**_

It was a little colder than I had expected. With music blasting in my ears, I barely noticed that it was snowing now. I shivered a little as I stuffed my hands into my pockets. Note to self: Next time, bring gloves.

I was walking for awhile. Before I knew it, I had come to this place _again._ There was this park nearby my house. Whenever I was felt like I needed a place think, I would go there. It wasn't really a secret hideout, but I was there often enough that I considered it my spot.

But, when I entered the area I noticed that someone else was already there.

_Ah…so she's here too._

Up ahead there was a single brown bench that stared forwards, facing the fountain. A girl was sitting on it; long, beautiful auburn hair, tied up into a cute sideways-ponytail waved slightly in the wind. I soon found myself sitting on the other end of the bench, where we both sat together in amicable silence. I don't know why, but seeing her here calmed me a little. It's strange, isn't it? Feeling this way, even though we've never spoken a word to one another before… I knew it. I must be going insane after all! I mean she looks to be about my age, but I have no idea what school she goes to. I don't even know her name!

I glanced out of the corner of my eye – today, she was wearing a pink scarf that was wrapped snugly around her neck and partially covering her pink lips. She was also wearing a puffy white coat, a pair of sneakers, and a skirt that was far too short for this weather.

_How does she keep warm?_ My gaze eventually fell onto her face. Her eyes, I think she had blue eyes but I couldn't be sure; every time we were here, she would be looking up at the sky. Sometimes, I found myself staring up at that ever-changing blue canvas too. What was so interesting about it? What was it that she found so enrapturing? I had no idea. I still don't.

Every day…it was the same. I was fairly certain that it would stay that way, but today…for whatever reason…

"Why?" The word left my lips before my mind even registered it.

There was a pause, as if she was processing the fact that I had said something. "Why?" she asked.

I took out my headphones and turned to see the most beautiful pair of sapphire blue eyes that I had ever seen. Seeing them for the first time, actually speaking to one another for the first time, I felt my heart strangely beat a little faster.

I licked my chapped lips. "Mm…You're always looking up at the sky. But, it's not like there are any stars out or anything…"

She seemed to consider this for a moment. It was clear that she was silently debating her answer.

"I don't know." She finally said. "Do you need stars to look at the sky?"

"Huh?" The question caught me off-guard. "I-I don't know." _Do you? _"Well, if you're not stargazing, then what _are_ you looking at?"

She shook her head. "It's not so much what I'm looking at, as what I see. You see...when I look at the sky…I see freedom."

"Freedom?" I tasted the word on my lips. At best, it felt awkward.

We both looked up at the sky again. It was a dark, blue sky, with overlaying clouds. There were no stars out, and I immediately felt my eyebrows furrow again.

"It's big, isn't it?" I heard the girl beside me say. She lifted up her arms, framing it in her view. I saw the bright smile on her face and thought - just maybe I was looking at this the wrong way. It felt a little silly, but, despite the cold, I lifted up my arms as well and squinted harder at the mass of dark gray.

"When I look up at the sky, I imagine myself flying through it. Through the clouds, with the wind blowing in my hair…like I could go anywhere and be anything I want to be."

She turned towards me and smiled. Was there a strange look on my face? I'm sure there was.

"The snow…it's bright, isn't it?"

I blinked suddenly. _Oh! _I was so focused on the clouds that I hadn't really noticed anything else. But, white, fluffy snowflakes slowly fell down all around us, and I could only stare back in a mixture of wonderment and surprise. Why did they seem brighter than they were a second ago?

"…Yeah." I breathed out. For the briefest moment, I felt a small smile form in my heart. But the fleeting feeling was gone as fast as it came when I noticed the intent look she was giving me. "What's wrong?"

With little warning, she shuffled forwards and clasped my hands in hers. I felt the blood instantly rush to my face in embarrassment.

"W-W-What-"

"I thought so."

"Eh?"

"They're really cold. You didn't bring any gloves with you?"

"Ah, well, no…I was sorta in a rush…"

"I see…"

I winced slightly when she slapped my palms together a few times, and then nearly squeaked in surprise as she blew warm air onto them. She repeated this a few times: alternating between blowing on my hands and quickly rubs her hands against mine together. I felt my hands warm up in no time.

"There! How's that?" She asked when she was finished. To be honest, I was at a loss for words. I looked back and forth between my hands and her face, before finally deciding to stare at the ground. "Oh, sorry about that, nyahaha~"

Her laughter brought me to look back up in time to see a pair of red, wool gloves being offered out to me.

"Here. This should help to _keep_ them warm."

"Wha? Oh, no. T-There's no way I can accept this… I'll be fine really."

She then did something that I didn't expect. She clicked her tongue at me. "Don't worry. I was just heading home anyways. You can give them back to me later, okay?"

This time she didn't even wait for an answer. She shoved the gloves into my hands and swiftly ran off.

"Hey, wait! I don't even know your name!"

But she didn't even look back; she had already disappeared into the crowd. I guess she didn't hear me…

_What just happened?_

I wasn't sure how long it was that I sat there, but for the longest time afterward I could only stare at those gloves and think how warm they felt…


	2. Ghost Girl

**A/N** : Just as a heads up I will be continuing the rest of this story in a third person point of view. Also, honorifics will be kept to a minimum. Thanks!

**Disclaimer****: **I do **not** own MLGN.

* * *

_Ever since then, I haven't been able to get a decent night's sleep. I would spend hours tossing and turning over stupid questions like, why did she do that? Why would she help out a stranger? I mean, it's not like she walks up to any random person on a daily basis and offers them her belongings, right? It got me thinking….What sort of person is she? She seemed like a nice person, maybe a little strange and…a little forceful, but I couldn't say for sure. Well, whatever the reason, I finally came to a decision. Things couldn't go on like this. I needed help. So naturally, I called… _

"So, let me see if I got this right." Chrono started slowly.

Fate pretended to be immersed in her textbook as she braced herself for what was coming.

Chrono Harlaown was her senior by a few years and a good friend. He had already graduated from Uminari High some time ago, but he still seemed to be popular with the ladies as ever,if Fate's ringing ears were any testament to that. She couldn't believe how loud his "adoring fans" were. Sure, he was tall, smart, handsome, captain of the basketball team, and all Mr. _Perfect _but that shouldn't give anyone an excuse to burst her eardrums. In fact, this was just one of the many reasons she was hesitant call him up. Clearly it was dangerous to her health.

For a brief moment, Fate thought back to the reason why she had called them up in the first place.

_That girl…I wonder what she's doing right now._

"Hey, Fate. Are you even listening?"

"Yes." Fate said automatically. Almost instantly there was a light 'bop' to the back of her head.

"Nice try kiddo. But you were totally just spacing out right now! Just admit it already."

Fate turned around, rubbing the sore spot as she warily eyed the short, brown-haired woman. Amy Limietta, Chrono's current girlfriend and apparently the love of his life. She still wasn't quite sure what to think of this one.

"I was paying attention." She insisted.

"Weeeeeere not." Amy enunciated and poked her nose. "You aren't fooling anyone. You might be able to fool your teachers, but I know a dazed look when I see one. Hmph, it was almost like your head was in the clouds." She suddenly gasped. "Wait a sec, that wasn't just cloud nine by any chance, was it?" She leaned in, her grin widening as she watched the younger girl shrink back into her seat. "So who is it? Is it a boy? Hmmmmmm?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Super duper sure with a cherry on top?"

"Positive."

"But Faaaaaate-" The brunette slipped her arms around the younger girl's shoulders, putting on her best hurt puppy dog eyes look. When the blonde did not budge her eyes suddenly turned sharp with a look that just said 'tell me'.

"I-I already told you! It's not like that!" Fate yelped when the hold around her neck tightened.

"Maybe you should consider loosening up that death grip of yours, Ames…she's starting to turn purple." Chrono mused. "Actually, keep going. See if she'll turn into a lovely shade of green. Maybe that'll teach her to pay attention."

"…J…e…rk…"

"Sorry, what was that?" Red eyes glared back. Fate was really starting to turn a beautiful shade of blue so like a merciful older brother, he showed the girl some mercy. "Just remember, you brought this upon yourself, so no complaints, alright? Let her go Ames."

"Awwww…fine." The girl huffed.

As soon as she was released, Fate heaved for air. "Yeah, but I didn't know you two were on a date! If I had known, I wouldn't have…"

She saw Amy reach out again and flinched, only to find the girl gently patting her head this time. "Heh, don't be silly. You're like a little sister to us. If there was something bothering you, then we'd be more than glad to help, right?" She looked back to her boyfriend, who coughed lightly in return.

"Anyway, as I was saying before we got off track…you said that you were looking for someone, right?"

"Mm…"

"But you don't know her name?"

"No, I tried to ask but-" She opened her mouth, but promptly shut it at _that_ look. "She was a fast runner, okay?"

"Fate. Did you get a name or not?"

She sighed. "No, I didn't."

"Okay. And we don't know what school she goes to either right? She wasn't wearing a uniform by any chance, was she?"

"Not that I could see…"

"But you thought she was about your age?"

"Mm…"

Chrono put a hand to his chin in a thoughtful pose. "So, in short, we are looking for a red headed girl with blue eyes that looks about your age. Well, that shouldn't be too hard. I mean, how many girls in Japan look like that?" He crossed his arms again. "Fate, I love you but sometimes you are really just amazing."

"Hey, it's not like it was my idea." _It's not like I asked her to do that._ "I told her I'd be fine without them."

"Uh huh. Well, here's an idea. You said that she goes to the park pretty often right? So why not just wait for her there?"

"Mm…that's what I thought too. But I've been waiting for almost a week now and I still haven't seen her. It's almost like she's vanished into thin air…" She sighed. "I know I'm probably being silly, but I feel kind of bad for still having them. I mean, it's not like they belong to me, and I'm sure she's probably missing them. You know, with the way the weather has been lately and all."

"Yeah, maybe…Or maybe, she doesn't really care. It is that season after all. I'm sure she has more than one pair of gloves. I mean, if they were really that important to her you'd think that she would have come back for them by now, right?" Chrono pointed out. He paused when he noted Fate's quiet reaction. "Fate, I get that you're trying to do the right thing, I really do, but I don't think you should feel obligated to hunt all over the city just to find her."

"Ah…yeah, you're right." The more Fate thought about it, the sillier she felt. Why would a person only have one pair of gloves for the season? In fact, maybe the girl had forgotten all about her and the gloves. Maybe that's why she hasn't returned.

_That's right. Just what was I thinking?_

"Thanks Chrono. Maybe that's what I'll do. I'll wait for a little while longer, and if she doesn't show up then I'll forget all about it."

The blue haired boy was about to nod, when Amy jumped in.

"Woah, woah, woah, hold up! No way!" She flailed her arms. "We can't just give up. I'm sure Ghost-chan would agree as well."

Both Fate and Chrono blinked at that. "Huh?"

"Ghost-chan~" The brunette said again, confirming what they had just heard.

"Ghosts?" Fate squeaked this time.

"Hey, I'm just saying. You said you guys met on several occasions, but she never talked right? Soooo, what if she was actually a ghost?"

"Amy, that's…" Chrono began.

"Just humour me for a second, okay, Honey?" she winked, then directed her attention back to the blonde teen. "I can just see it now. Poor Ghost-chan was a lonely school girl who died tragically in a car accident. And ever since then she's been haunting that one bench in the park, waiting for the day when that one special person will acknowledge her existence. Ah, it's so sad, isn't it? Waiting day after day, sitting alone in that dark park…So naturally, when Fate spoke to her, she realized she was no longer alone, and so overcome by gratitude she gave our dear Fate a parting gift. "You can give it to me later" a promise to meet in eternity." She gestured dramatically, but paused when she heard a low muttering.

"Umm…Fate? You okay?" Chrono asked. The girl was whispering something under her breath that sounded awfully like a mantra: "there are no such things as ghosts, there are no such things as ghosts".

_Uhh…right. _

"Um, just one problem with that Ames…"

"Yes?"

"If she was killed in a car accident, then why would she haunt a park bench? Are there even any roads near that area in the park?"

"Erm…well…what if it was done by a drunk driver? It could happen couldn't it? Maybe he swerved off the road."

Chrono deadpanned. "A drunk driver... Who happens to veer off the road and magically topple over every single tree in a straight beeline attempt to run over an unsuspecting person?"

"Ehehe… there are a lot of trees in a park, aren't there…Wait! What if they were lovers?"

"Huh?"

"Yeah, of course! Why didn't I think of it before? Maybe it wasn't an accident! Maybe Mr. Drunk was jealous that Ghost-chan was so popular at school that if he couldn't have her, then no one else could. SO. HE. _**KiLlEd HeR**_…Yes!" She pumped her fist into the air with fire in her eyes. "I'm sure of it!"

"Actually, he sounds more like a stalker. Ah-Wait! When did she become popular at school?'

"She always was, weren't you listening?" The girl proceeded to go into her story telling rant inside her head, still believing that she was actually relaying it all out loud. In her own right some would think it was a cute little habit, but it secretly sometimes drove Chrono a little crazy.

"Right, don't listen to her Fate. She's just pulling your leg." Chrono turned his attention to the teen. "Now if you're really serious about finding this mystery girl, I do have a suggestion if you're up to it." He saw the girl snap out of her mantra and turn her big red eyes to look up at him. Ah, there was a hopeful look to them. It was cute. "You see," he explained, "in situations like this, a wise man once said that salvation lies within the mysteries of Fate." Glare. "Sorry, destiny,' he quickly corrected himself.

"I don't follow." Fate said slowly.

"Ahem, basically…it means that, sometimes, you need to tempt a higher power and see what you get. For example, you see that door over there? I want you to step outside of it."

"Eh? Why?"

"Well, who knows? Maybe if you step outside of it, Ghost-chan will come running into your open arms."

Fate felt her ears burn red. "Okay, now you're just making fun of me."

"No, I'm not. I'm serious! It actually works, I've seen it happen!" He saw the hesitant look on the girl's face, and could barely hide his glee when it became apparent that she was seriously thinking it over. "Go on. I mean, what's the worst that could happen?"

As Fate stood up and walked towards the door, Amy leaned in and whispered, "Say, this wise source of yours…You wouldn't happen to be referring to those manga comics you've been reading lately, would you?"

"Ames, I'm hurt that you would even insinuate such a thing. What sort of person do you take me for? Besides, I think it's a little more believable than 'Ghost-chan'."

"What? No way! Ghost-chan is very believable!"

"Shhhh! She's about to do it."

At that, the couple watched as the blonde cautiously inspected the door frame. Fate suddenly seemed to be on the verge of a change of heart.

_Okay Fate. You can do this…I mean, there's really no such thing as ghosts right? Right… And when I step outside of this door, nothing is going to happen, right? Right. Right…? _ She gulped. _I hope…_

Fate turned the door handle and took a deep breath before she stepped out into the hallway. Ten long agonizing seconds passed before she finally opened her eyes to find the hallway completely empty. If one word could sum up what she was feeling in that moment, it was '_relief'._

_Oh, thank God! _She sighed loudly before hearing an outburst of laughter behind her.

"H-Hey! Chrono, that was mean!" Fate shouted as she re-approached the jolly pair.

"Heh, I really don't know what you're talking about. I just merely said that it could happen. Oh, and by the way, you should have seen the look on your face. It was priceless."

"Grr, don't think for a second that you're going to get away with it. You do know that I'm going to get you back for this right?"

"Oh, I would like to see you try."

"Is that a challenge?"

"Okaaaaay kids, that's enough." Amy separated the two. "As funny as that was, we still haven't gotten anywhere with this case."

"Case?" Fate asked.

"That's right. A case! We need to find out 'Ghost-chan's' identity! Not just to return her gloves, but to also send her off to the other side. And do you know how we're going to do that?"

"Amy…" Chrono groaned.

"We're going back to visit the scene of the crime. Field trip!"

(Park)

After much coaxing and dragging, the three friends finally found themselves at the park where Fate had described the encounter. There were a few people out, but there was still no sign of their mysterious ghost.

"See, what did I tell you Amy? There's no way a car could have come through here." Chrono gestured.

"Hmmm…"

Fate walked over to the bench and sat down, leaving it up to the couple to fight it out amongst themselves.

_Ah…that feels good. _The bench felt a little cold, but it still felt good to let her feet rest. For a moment, Fate allowed her thoughts to drift.

_This is so unlike me. Why do I even care about this so much? Now I even got Chrono and Amy involved. _She glanced to the empty spot beside her. It was only for a brief second, but she thought she saw a flicker of the girl with red hair looking back at her.

_Ghost. _She heard Amy's words again and felt a shiver go down her spine. _No, no way! There are such things as ghosts. A-And even if there were I don't think she is one. When she held my hands, she was…well…solid._

"Hey, Fate!" Amy shouted.

"Huh? Ah, yes, what is it?"

"Hmm…did I scare you?"

"No…?"

Her grin widened. "Were you thinking about Ghost-chan again?"

"She's not a ghost. And no, I wasn't-Ack!"

"Bad girl," Amy chided the blonde as she gingerly rubbed her forehead. "We came all this way to find her, so focus hey?"

"Hm?"

"She's right you know. We did go out of our way to come here…and I'm sure you have important things to do too, right?" Chrono added.

"Yeah…you're right. I'm sorry. So what's the plan?"

"Heh, now that's more like it." Amy nodded.

"Well, first of all, I don't suppose you see her anywhere here?" Chrono asked.

Fate blinked and then scanned the area. There were a number of people out, but none of them were her.

"No, sorry, I don't."

"I see…"

"When I come here, this is the place where we usually meet."

"You mean at this bench, right?" Amy checked.

Fate nodded. "Mm…"

"I see. That's pretty interesting," Chrono mused aloud. "I almost have to wonder, are there any other places in the park that she might visit? I mean, out of all of the places she could go, why always this spot? Maybe she lives somewhere nearby?"

"That's easy. It's obviously because she's a ghost, Lovie Bear~"

Chrono's jaw dropped in shock as Fate let out a something like a snort. "Lovie Bear?"

"H-Hey! I told you not to call me that in public!"

"Aww, but you know you love it." She cooed.

"Amy…"

"Anyway! I have some good news for you Fate. You wanna hear?"

"Oh?"

"Ahem…WELL, after argu-_discussing-_ Chrono and I came to the decision that Ghost-chan was not killed by a drunk driver."

"Really? Is that so?"

"Yes! You see, she actually died through a suicide pact!"

"_HUH_?"

"I know, right? You see, Ghost-chan was actually madly in love with her boyfriend, Mr. Perfect. He was captain of all the sports teams, the class president, and even wrote poetry on the side. Like I said, perfect. But forget that. Get this: where we are now, this was actually _their_ spot, y'know?"

"Their spot?"

"The place where he proposed!"

Fate's mind instantly went blank, but fortunately Chrono was quick to the punch.

"P-Proposed? So you mean she was getting married?"

"But of course! Ghost-chan was not only very popular, but incredibly beautiful too! Like model pretty."

"That's ridiculous-Oof!"

"Shush, honey. Now as I was saying, he proposed and she accepted! But on the night before they were supposed to be getting married she caught him cheating with another man. Scandalous isn't it?"

_But if he was cheating with another man, then that would mean… I'm confused. _"So then, what happened?" Fate asked.

"She ran out crying, the poor girl. But you see… that was when tragedy struck. She wasn't looking where she was going when she ran into the street, and…"

There was another pause as Fate processed the ending. "She got hit by a car?"

"Yup, but the driver wasn't drunk! And that's why she's been haunting this place ever since!"

"…"

"I know, genius, right? Any questions?"

"Just one…?"

"Yes?"

"If she was going to get married, how does that make it a suicide pact?"

The question lingered in the air as the temperature seemed to drop a few degrees.

"I hate to tell you I told you so, but-OOF!"

"What suicide pact?" Amy finally said.

"But you said…"

"Bah! Small details! Anyways, the important thing is helping Ghost-chan to move on right?"

"So how are we supposed to do that?" Chrono wheezed. Now that Fate thought about it, did he just gain a few new shiny bruises?

"Simple. She had her heart broken right? So we have to make it up to her. That's where you come in Fate."

"Eh? Why me?"

"Because Chrono is already taken." Fate flinched when Amy suddenly clasped her hands and leaned in close. _Bad feeling, very bad feeling._

"Fate?"

"Y-Yes?"

"I want you to buy a flower."

"A flower?"

"And then-"

"Then?"

"I want you to propose."

"...P-" The word barely formed on her lips when something in her mind snapped. _What are you saying? _"B-But all I wanted to do was to give her back her gloves…"

"Haha, just joking!" She slapped the younger girl hard on the back, making her cough. "Well, just about the proposal part anyway. But I do think we should bring her something. Food might be nice, but there's no guarantee that it'll still be intact by the time we get back. So why don't we all make a trip to the florist shop, hmmm? What do you say?"

Both Chrono and Fate glanced at one another, and then back at the other girl who was just daring them to say no.

"Umm…okay?"

(Florist Shop)

_**Briiiing**_

The bells hanging on the front door of the shop jingled as they walked in. As soon as they did, their senses were instantly flooded by a mixture of light, sweet scents.

"Ahhhh…now this is more like it!" Amy sighed blissfully as she bathed in the warm atmosphere. "Oooh! This is a nice one."

Fate watched the older girl become easily distracted and sighed quietly to herself. She double checked her watch, carefully noting the time. As fun as this was, Chrono was right – she did have other things to do.

"Hey, Faaaate! Over here! Come look!" Amy waved her over to a small shelf to the side of the shop. Fate blinked; a basket of roses? This was what got Amy so excited? "Here, doesn't this one look pretty?"

She reluctantly accepted the held out flower. Fate turned it around a few times in feigned interest and inwardly shrugged. It was a red flower, what else was there to say about it?

"I guess it's nice?"

"Pssh! You haven't even smelled it yet. Go on, take a whiff."

Seeing that Amy wasn't about to let the matter drop so easily, Fate brought the flower to her face and immediately her eyes went wide. She froze; from within the petals there emerged the big, black and yellow behind of a bee.

Fate felt her breaths go shallow as the critter turned around and locked its beady eyes onto her.

"A-Amy…" Fate stuttered out.

"Hmm? What wrong? Oh."

"Fate, don't move." Chrono advised. "It'll only make things worse if you make it mad."

Fate glanced to him and back at the bee. It was _moving._ "C-Chrono- I-I c-c-can'"

_**Bzzzzz!**_

"KYAA!" Fate threw the flower up into the air and ran for the door for dear life with the bee in hot pursuit.

"Fate!"

Fate reached the door and promptly threw it open. Freedom was within her grasp, but that little bit of relief plummeted when she connected with something soft and heard a shriek of surprise.

She couldn't look, but then again how could she do anything but not look. She couldn't stop staring; the purple haired girl that she had run into now had a cup's worth of coffee spilled all over her jacket.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!" Her blonde companion shouted angrily. "Suzuka, are you alright?" Fate mentally flinched when those green eyes turned on her in a blink of an eye. They were positively murderous. "Well, are you just going to stand there or are you going to apologize?"

"I-I'm sorry…I didn't mean to."

"Yeah, well, you did! So how are you going to make up for it?"

"Arisa, it's okay, really…it was just an accident."

The girl opened her mouth, but then promptly closed it again. "Hmph."

"I'm really sorry," Fate tried again. "If there's anything I can do…well, I know there's not a lot I can do about your jacket, but if you'd like I could buy you another drink?"

"Hey, just what are you saying?" Arisa stepped between them.

"Huh? Nothing, I just…"

"Fate, are you okay?" Chrono poked his head out and stopped when he noticed the two other girls. "Oh sorry…am I interrupting something?"

Arisa was about to reply, but this time Suzuka beat her to it. She smiled at Fate.

"Thank you, but that's not really necessary. Now, if you would please excuse us?" And with that, they were gone. However, they didn't take the bad taste that the encounter had left behind with them. She still felt bad for the purple-haired girl. If she had only stood still like Chrono had told her to then maybe the incident could have been avoided.

"What was that about?" Chrono's voice broke her out of her thoughts.

"It's…complicated."

"People you know from school?"

"I don't think so." _I'm pretty sure I've never seen either of them before in my life. But that blonde girl…the uniform she was wearing looks an awful lot like our school uniform._ _I hope I never run into her again. _

"Anyway, where's Amy?"

"Amy? She's back inside. I think she's seriously thinking about buying that flower." He paused. "You know Fate, if you have to run, you can. I'll take care of Ames."

"Really? Are you sure?"

"Well, she'll be mad for a few hours, but you know how she is. She'll get over it."

"Thanks Chrono. Really, for everything."

"Heh, I wish we could have been more help, but I guess that's the way things go sometimes. Best of luck with 'Ghost-chan', okay? But a little advice? It's not your fault if she doesn't ever get them back, you hear? So don't blame yourself."

"Okay…"

"Right. Now scat before I change my mind."

Fate nodded and waved as she left. She was a couple of blocks away when she was going over her mental check list. That was when she remembered – didn't she have math homework due tomorrow? She slowed in her steps to check her bag.

_Where is it? _She shuffled through the papers but it didn't look like it was there. A small curse left her lips. She was already short on time, she didn't need this now. "Crap, I must've left it at school."

Fate turned on a heel and rushed back to the school.

To her luck, her textbook was still where she left it. "Ah, thank goodness." Picking it up, the girl breathed a sigh of relief as she pocketed the item. With any luck there would be no more interruptions.

Fate turned to leave, but then paused briefly to think about the events that ensued earlier that afternoon. She still couldn't believe how wild Amy's stories could be or for that matter, how she managed to let Chrono dupe her again. When was she going to learn? She glanced at the doorway, still feeling the mild sting of humiliation.

"Ghosts…right." She chuckled to herself.

Hurriedly so not to be late for her next appointment, she threw open the classroom door and her heart stopped when she heard a loud shriek.

For the next few moments, Fate could only stare in utter disbelief. Her mouth was shaped in a perfectly small 'O' as realization was starting to sink in.

"Oh…shit." She whispered.

* * *

_And that was how I came to know her name._

_

* * *

_

**Omake (Extra)**

"Amy…?"

"What is it now Chrono?"

"We've been staring at that bench for hours now. Maybe it's time to call it a night? Or at the very least, I think that flower is going to die if we leave it there any longer."

"No way! She'll be here any minute now. Just you wait Ghost-chan, I will catch you! Muhahahaha!"


	3. Yes Master

**Disclaimer****: **I do **not** own MLGN in any way.

* * *

_Looking back on it, I guess I should have done something sooner. But it was the first time I've ever knocked someone off of their feet so I was in a bit of a shock._

Fate watched dumbstruck as the redheaded girl attempted to sit up. It wasn't until she heard a groan and saw the girl reaching for her head that she reacted.

"I-I'm so sorry!" Fate bent down beside the girl. "Are you okay? Here, let me see." She reached out and grasped her hand, trying to gently coax it aside, but was startled when the brunette suddenly yelped and jerked away. "Sorry! I-umm…um..."

The way the other girl was clutching her hand to her chest made Fate feel even worse. She hadn't meant to startle her.

"Sorry… I guess I shouldn't have done that."

"No, it's alright!" Her head shot up and their gazes met in awkward silence. Fate blinked, and the girl smiled back in response. "I'm okay, really. You just surprised me, that's all."

"Still…" Fate's gaze was drawn to the darkening mark on the girl's forehead. She hesitated to ask. "Does it hurt?"

"Eh? You mean this? Ah, well," she laughed nervously, "it does hurt a little but I'm sure it's nothing serious. I'll be fine." Almost as a second thought, she raised her bangs slightly. "Does it look bad?"

"A little." Fate admitted. "It's pretty red. We should probably put an ice pack or something on it or it's going to bruise. And it probably wouldn't hurt getting it checked too. It sounded like you got hit by that door pretty hard." The thought made her throat tighten. What if the girl had a concussion?

"Don't worry. I'll just drop by the infirmary later. The school nurse has been working late lately so I'm sure she'll be around."

"Mm…" Fate nodded. "Wait, you aren't going to go now?"

"Hmmm…I guess I coooouuuld."

_But she doesn't want to_. Fate sighed. "Do you want me to come with you?"

"What? No, no, that's okay! I'm sure you have other things to do. I mean, you looked like you were in bit rush and all, so I'm sure it's pretty important." She flashed another smile to reassure the blonde. "I'll be fine, really."

Fate was torn between staying and leaving. She was in a rush, but that was exactly what had got her into this situation in the first place. On the other hand, it wasn't as though she could force the girl to go and get help if she didn't want it right?

As she silently debated what to do she noticed that the brunette was still holding her right hand rather protectively. Was it shaking?

"Are you sure you're okay?" Fate asked again.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, when you fell did you hurt anything else?"

"No?"

Fate took a deep breath and her expression turned serious. "By the way, I don't think we've ever introduced ourselves. My name is Fate Testarossa. It's nice to meet you."

The girl looked at the outstretched hand in surprise, but nevertheless she reflexively reached for it.

"Nanoha Takamachi, it's nice to meet you too-Ngh!"

Fate couldn't help but feel a small smile tug at the corner of her lips. With a perfectly straight face, she said, "Why Takamachi-san, is there something wrong with your hand? Maybe we should get this checked when we have your head checked too."

Nanoha had a stunned look on her face.

"I'll call in and tell them I'll be late. C'mon, let's go."

"But-"

"No buts."

(School Infirmary)

It was the first time Fate visited the infirmary, so she wasn't sure what to expect. But the moment they walked into the room and saw the nurse, she had to admit that she was surprised. The school nurse looked younger than she had expected; she was a young woman, approximately in her late twenties, with short blonde hair and dark, warm eyes. But however inexperienced she appeared to be she had this calming air to her.

"Nanoha," She lowered her clipboard and greeted the pair with a smile. "What a surprise. What can I do for you today?"

_Today? _Fate wondered.

"Nothing too much I hope." Nanoha greeted her back. "Shamal, this is Fate. Fate, this is Shamal. I'm not sure if you've two met, but Shamal is our school nurse."

"No, I believe this is the first time we've met. It's nice to meet you, Fate." Shamal's smile grew a fraction at the younger girl's shy nod. "So who am I treating today?"

"Her." Fate immediately pointed to Nanoha, which earned a cute pout from the brunette.

Fate patiently watched from the side as Shamal examined Nanoha. After seeing the nasty bruising on Nanoha's forehead, Shamal retrieved an ice pack and instructed the girl to hold it over the bump while she checked her eyes. Fate had to admit that Nanoha was taking the situation very well. In a way, seeing how relaxed the two of them were helped to alleviate some of her own anxiety. Her gaze fell on Nanoha's school uniform. There was that nagging feeling again; Fate was fairly certain that it was Nanoha that she had met in the park, but she couldn't help but doubt herself. If they were attending the same school all this time then why didn't she notice sooner?

"So, how does it look?" Nanoha asked.

"It would make things easier if you would just sit still." Shamal said as she moved from her head to the teen's wrist.

"Aww, I can't help it! You're taking too long and the ice is kind of cold." Nanoha looked to the side to see if Fate was getting bored. The girl noticed, so she just gave her a small wave.

Fate watched Shamal lean in to whisper something into Nanoha's ear. Whatever she said seemed to catch the girl's attention because she then obediently outstretched her wrist and sat still.

Curiosity was starting to get the better of Fate. "It's not broken is it?" She asked nervously.

Nanoha yelped when Shamal twisted her wrist several times in succession.

"Hmmm…it doesn't appear to be broken. At best, I would say that it's probably just a sprain." She finally released the girl's arm much to her patient's relief. "If you don't mind me asking, what were you two doing when this happened?"

Nanoha met Fate's gaze, which seemed to be a mistake because Shamal's attention also shifted to the blonde teen.

"Fate?"

"Umm, well…that is…" Fate could feel her pulse begin to race. _W-What do I say? I can't tell her that I creamed her with a door! _ It would not only be incredibly embarrassing but also incredibly stupid.

"Hmmm?"

She gulped. "It-It was an accident-"

"Yeah, we were just practicing!" Nanoha said quickly.

Shamal blinked in surprise at the outburst. "Practicing? Practicing for what?"

"Uh, well...you know how things are. We watched a crazy martial arts movie the other day, annnnd we thought we'd try some of the moves for ourselves. You know, for fun?"

"Really? Is that so?" The woman pretended to consider the excuse, but she just gave the girls an all knowing smile. "My, young people today are so reckless! It's alright to horse-around sometimes but you should keep in mind that you aren't invincible. That's when little accidents like these happen, right?"

"Nyahaha…right."

_She's knows. _Fate shivered at the cheery exchange. Fortunately, it looked like Shamal had no intention of pursuing it.

"In any case, I would recommend the usual. As long as you ice it and give it a chance to heal, I think you'll be alright. The same goes for the bump on your head. But," she said, making sure the girl was paying attention, "if you're really worried about your arm, not that I think you are, you can always go and have it x-rayed."

"Yup, I'll keep it in mind. Thank you very much for taking a look at me."

"Not a problem. That's why I'm here after all." She glanced at her watch and noted the time. "Ah, that's reminds me, there's another patient that I need to attend to. But if there are any changes or anything else comes up, please feel free to drop by. That applies to you too." She winked at Fate.

"O-Oh…yes. Thank you."

Fate watched the woman leave the room. She didn't relax until she heard the door close behind them.

_Whew. _"That…was close." She didn't realize that she had said the words out loud until she heard Nanoha giggle.

"It was, wasn't it?"

Fate looked to the smiling girl in front of her. Her blue eyes seemed to be twinkling with amusement, which did nothing but confuse Fate even more. Why would anyone be happy to hear that they had a sprained wrist?

"Hey, can I ask you a question?"

Nanoha tilted her head. "Yes?"

"Why did… you lie?" Catching her look, Fate quickly stammered, "I-I mean, it's not like we're friends or anything. Besides…I'm pretty sure she already knows that we weren't wrestling around."

"Ah," her companion said in sudden understanding. "Well, Shamal is a smart person."

"Then why?"

Nanoha returned her gaze with a curious one. "Did you want me to tell her?"

"Wha? No, but…"

She giggled again. "It was an accident, right? There's really nothing anyone can do about it, so I sorta thought, why bring it up again?"

"I see…" Fate said, though not sounding very convinced.

"Any other questions?"

"Actually, yes."

"Well, aren't you curious today?" She was surprised to see the other girl blush. After that little trick the blonde pulled earlier, seeing her slightly off balance was definitely a nice change of pace.

"Takamachi-san-"

"Nanoha. Please call me Nanoha."

"Nanoha…"

"I probably should have asked you this before, but would you mind if I called you Fate?"

Fate seemed to consider the request for a moment. "I don't mind," she finally said.

"So, Fate, what can I do for you?" Nanoha asked cheerfully.

"Well, it's just…I was wondering."

"Yes?"

"We've met before, right? At the park?" The way the girl's expression went from cheerful to unreadable made Fate suddenly nervous. She tried a different angle. "It's just, you wouldn't happen to be the owner of these would you?" All doubt vanished the moment she pulled the red gloves from her bag and Nanoha's face instantly lit up.

"Omigosh! My gloves!" Fate resisted the urge to chuckle as she watched the girl practically glomp the mittens. She never saw this side to her before. It was so childlike, almost cute. "They're my favorite pair. Thank you so much."

The way she smiled at her shone with sincerity. Fate was pretty sure that she was blushing from head to toe, but she was definitely thankful for her persistent streak now. "S-Sure, no problem." She said softly.

"I meant to drop by earlier, but something came up. You weren't waiting for me, were you?"

"No, not really! I mean, sorta…I mean-"

Fate's saving grace was the sudden vibrations from Nanoha's cell phone on the nearby bed table. She didn't want to tell Nanoha that she had been waiting every day for the past week at that spot.

"Sorry, one sec?"

"Sure."

Fate watched Nanoha flip it open, briefly reading the screen, before closing it again.

"Text message?"

"Mm." she nodded. "That was just some friends of mine. I was supposed to meet up with them later, so I told them that I was going to be a bit late."

"Sorry…"

"It's okay, it wasn't your fault." A thoughtful look then crossed her eye. "Hey… I know this is short notice, but would you like to come with us?"

"Huh?"

"We were thinking of meeting up for a movie or maybe some karaoke. I guess you could say that we haven't quite decided yet nyahaha. So, what do you think? Would you be interested?"

"I don't know…Wouldn't I be intruding?"

"What? No way! I'm sure everyone would be happy to meet you."

"Everyone?"

"Mm, Arisa and Suzuka. They're really close friends of mine. But don't worry, they're really nice and I'm sure you'll all get along."

_Arisa and Suzuka…Where have I heard those names before?_

"Thanks. I'd really like to, but I'm afraid I can't." Fate said as she stood up. "I already have plans."

"Oh!" Nanoha gasped, suddenly remembering. "I'm so sorry, I forgot…"

To save the girl further embarrassment, Fate offered, "Maybe another time?"

"Yeah. For sure…"

There was an awkward silence as they both wondered what else to say.

"So then, I guess I'll be going now?" Fate broke the silence first.

"Yeah, I guess I'll be seeing you around?"

"I guess."

Nanoha watched as the girl turned to leave. She silently debated whether she should speak up or leave it for now, but in the end she couldn't decide. Fate was halfway across the room when the infirmary door abruptly swung open.

"Nanoha! We came over as soon as we got your text and-" Arisa's words trailed off the moment she caught sight of Fate. The shock quickly turned to anger. "You? What are you doing here?"

Fate felt the blood drain from her face. Now she knew why those names sounded so familiar.

"Ah, Arisa. Suzuka." Nanoha cheerfully greeted them both. "This is Fate. Have you two met already?"

"Yeah, you could say that." Arisa muttered dryly.

"Really? When?" Nanoha continued as if she didn't sense the impending doom in the air. Fate however was convinced that she had already overstayed her welcome.

"I was just on my way out. I'll leave you guys be." Fate stepped past the two girls. She reached for the door when she heard Arisa shriek. Suddenly there was a dark presence hovering over her shoulder.

"**HOLD ON**_**. JUsT wHeRe Do YoU tHiNk YoU'rE gOiNg**_?" Arisa asked sweetly. Her hand was practically crushing Fate's on the door knob and was effectively barring the girl's escape.

"Umm…out?"

"Oh, is that so? Then before you leave, could you please kindly tell me how Nanoha was injured?"

Fate instantly went rigid, something that Arisa did not miss.

"Well, that is…"

"It's really nothing Arisa. It was my fault that I was hurt."

"Yeah, you might say that but somehow I got a funny feeling that our little friend here played a part in it." She looked Fate in the eye. "Tell me, it wouldn't happen to involve any swinging doors by any chance, would it?"

Fate could already see where this was going, and deep down she knew that running away wasn't going help things. Somehow knowing that helped her to regain her composure.

She took a deep breath and returned the girl's hard look with a calm one of her own.

"You're right. It was my fault."

"Fate," Nanoha said, but the red eyed girl wasn't about to give her a chance to intervene.

"It was an accident, but she was hurt because of my carelessness. I'm sorry."

Arisa seemed momentarily taken aback by the sudden admission, but she quickly jumped back to the offensive. "Is that so? Well then, how are you going to make up for it? And don't think for a second that an apology is going to cut it this time."

Fate was at a loss. It's not like she was a miracle worker and could magically cure bruises and broken wrists. So what did the other girl expect her to do?

"I don't know," she finally said.

"You don't know." Arisa repeated flatly. "Well then, I have a suggestion for you. Until Nanoha gets better, you will be her servant!"

"Arisa, what are you doing?" Suzuka hissed, but the girl ignored her.

"I don't think I follow." Fate said. _When she says 'servant' she doesn't mean the whole servant and master thing, does she? There's no way she could be talking about that, right?_

"It means exactly that," Arisa elaborated. "If Nanoha needs her books carried, then you carry them. If she needs someone to help her take notes, you take them. I could go on, but I think you get the picture."

"Arisa, that's really not necessary." Nanoha interrupted. "That's what I have two hands for. I'll be fine."

The blonde looked over at her friend holding an ice pack to her head with a skeptical look, before returning her attention to the girl in front of her.

"Well? Are you going to refuse?"

* * *

_So I guess I'm going to be helping Nanoha out for the next few days or at least until she gets better. To be honest, I'm still not really sure what happened. But I guess helping her carry her things is the least I can do, right? _

_I couldn't hang around yesterday, so I guess today is officially my first day 'on the job'. Since we're in different classes, there really wasn't a lot that I could this morning so I decided to meet her for lunch._

_**Briiiiing!**_

Fate was already waiting outside of the classroom as the bell rang and people began to spill out. It wasn't long until she spotted Nanoha. The brunette looked genuinely surprised to see her.

"Fate?"

"Good afternoon." She greeted her.

"Ah, good afternoon. So, what are you doing here? Don't tell me that you're actually taking Arisa seriously?"

"Well, you know…" She shrugged. "It was technically my fault, so it's the least I can do, right? Bag?" She reached out for Nanoha's bag, but to Fate's dismay the girl tried to hide it behind her back. "What are you doing?"

"Don't get me wrong. I think it's very sweet that you want to help, but I can handle it. Trust me."

Fate frowned slightly. She had a feeling that the girl was stubborn, but not this stubborn.

It was Nanoha's turn to be surprised when the taller girl stepped forward and pressed her arms to either side of her, effectively trapping her in place.

"F-Fate? What?" Her eyes widened as the girl leaned in towards her. Nanoha felt a shiver run down her spine when she felt her warm breath ghost over her ear.

"You do realize… that my life depends on this, right?" Fate whispered. Down the hallway from the pair, there was a very dark presence intensely watching their every movement.

Two hands tugged on her bag and Nanoha frowned. _Sneaky._

"The bag please."

The brunette finally gave up and relinquished the bag. "Fine." She was normally not a violent person, but at this moment she was very close to giving Arisa a piece of her mind.

(Cafeteria)

The pair soon found themselves in the school cafeteria. Fate took a moment to survey the area and look at all the people.

"So, you usually eat your lunch in here?" She asked as they took a seat in the corner of the room.

"Yeah. It's usually just me, Arisa, Suzuka and Hayate. Actually, we usually eat on the roof, but since it's been so cold lately we've been eating indoors." She pulled out her lunch and began to unpack it. "What about you?"

"Same, I guess." She shrugged. "Umm…just out of curiosity, who is Hayate?"

"Hayate? She's a friend of ours. I think I've probably known her as long as Arisa and Suzuka." Nanoha paused thoughtfully. "She's…how to put it? She's an interesting person, but I think you'll like her."

"Really?"

"Mm."

Fate wasn't quite convinced. She said the same thing about Arisa and the girl downright hated her. Though, she had to admit some of that was probably her fault.

"So, about today…" Nanoha started. "This whole helping me out thing, doesn't it feel awkward to you?"

"Not really." Fate replied as she took a bit of her lunch.

"But-"

Before Nanoha could say anything more someone pulled up a chair and sat down at their table. They both looked over to see that it was another girl about their age. She had short, brown hair that fell just above her shoulders, and a pair of light blue eyes. Right away Fate could see that she was somewhat unique. The moment the girl sat down she proceeded to stare at Fate as though she were an interesting piece of gossip.

"Oh Hayate, good afternoon." Nanoha greeted her friend. The girl gave a simple nod in return. "I don't suppose you've met Fate. Fate this is Hayate. Hayate, meet Fate."

"Nice to meet you?" Fate said. She wasn't quite sure if this was what Nanoha was referring to when she said her friend was interesting, but nevertheless it gave her a funny feeling.

_I don't know why, but she kind of reminds me of someone…_

"Fate, is it?" Hayate finally said. The girl had no idea how relieved Fate was that she broke the staring contest. Or maybe she did. Hayate smiled pleasantly at the girl. "It's nice to meet you. Like Nanoha said, my name is Hayate. I'm also friends with Arisa and Suzuka. Have you met them yet?"

"Yes." Fate and Nanoha said at once. They both looked at each other in surprise.

"Hmmmm?" Hayate tilted her head curiously at the pair. "So Fate, tell me something about yourself. How did you and Nanoha meet?"

"It was…I guess you could say it was by accident?"

"By accident?" She glanced at Nanoha's bandaged up wrist. "Do tell."

"It was nothing. We ran into each other at school yesterday." Nanoha helpfully filled in.

"Literally or figuratively? Oof!" The girl grunted when she felt a foot connect with hers underneath the table. "Okay, okay…Next question then?" she shot Nanoha a look before continuing. Her friend was eating her lunch like nothing had happened.

_Oh please, innocent my ass._

"Fate, I would just like to confirm a few things if you don't mind." Hayate said as she withdrew a pencil and a small notepad. That caught the blonde's attention.

"Confirm what?" She asked nervously.

"Oh relax. It's really simple. I'm just going to ask you a few easy questions and I'd like you to answer them, okay?"

"Okay…?" Fate didn't know why, but she had a funny feeling that she was about to be interrogated.

"Okay. So to start, can you please confirm that your name is Fate Testarossa?"

"What?"

"Just say yes."

"Yes?"

"Great! Question two…What is your favorite T.V. show?"

"Umm…Sorry, but I don't really watch T.V."

"Okay. Question three. What is your favorite colour?"

"Black, I guess…"

"Really? Does that include undergarments? **–**_**Whack**_**!-**Yipe!" Hayate bit her lip to stifle the pain from her throbbing leg. "N-Nanoha, do you have something to say to me?"

"Me? What do you mean? Why should I have anything to say to you?" She calmly took another sip of her drink.

"Oh, I was just wondering since we're such great friends and all." When the girl did not reply, she returned her attention to her victim friend-in-waiting. "Sorry about that Fate. All jokes, y'know? Hahaha. Shall we proceed onto question four?"

The conversation carried on like that with an occasional odd yelp from Hayate. To be truthful, Fate found the entire process a little bizarre and overwhelming. Since when did it matter if she was right handed or left handed or how tall she was? She couldn't help but feel that Nanoha was starting to lose patience with the questioning 'process' as well. Could it be that she was be becoming bored too?

"Fine," Hayate sighed. "If you won't give me your measurements, then I suppose I will have to make do." She cautiously monitored Nanoha's reaction out of the corner of her eye. Her legs were twitching like crazy right now, but dammit if it wasn't worth it!

"Hayate, Fate still needs to eat her lunch. Are you almost done?" Nanoha asked.

In that moment Hayate made an executive decision; deciding that she kind of wanted to be able to walk to class after lunch, she decided to cut Fate a break.

"Uh, yeah, almost... Just one last question? I promise it will be the last!" She said quickly. When she didn't receive another kick, she looked back at Fate with a surprisingly serious expression. "Are you ready?"

The girl nodded.

"Okay, Fate…I hate saying this, but I have to ask…What are your intentions with Nanoha?"

At that exact moment Nanoha started to choke on her food.

"Nanoha? Are you alright?" Fate was about to stand up from her seat, but Nanoha held up a hand.

"I-I'll be fine. Really…" She coughed. "Something just went down the wrong way."

"Are you sure?"

"She'll be fine. So, what's your answer?" Hayate asked again.

Fate sighed. "I'm afraid I don't understand the question."

"Well, you see it sorta goes like this **–**_**WHACK**_**!-**YIPE!"

Hayate did a face plant with the table and seemed to be trembling from…Fate was going to guess a stomach ache. The red-eyed girl wasn't really sure what was going on, but she took another bite of her lunch and smiled all the same.

(After Lunch)

After lunch the girls packed their belongings and headed back to class. Fate couldn't help but notice the awkward limp in Hayate's walk.

"Hayate, are you sure you're alright?"

"Hahahaha, yeah, sure. Of course I'm fine." She winced. _No thanks to a certain someone._ That was when an idea struck her. "Ah, by the way Fate, I don't know if Nanoha mentioned it to you but we were all thinking of hanging out next weekend and then have a sleepover at my place. You're invited if you want to come."

"Next weekend?"

"Yeah. Do you think you'd be able to make it?"

"I don't know…What day were you thinking?"

"Probably Saturday."

"I see…" Fate saw the expectant looks and felt a small sinking feeling forming in the pit of her stomach. She pushed it aside. "Thank you…but I don't think I can."

"Awww really? Do you already have plans?"

Fate nodded.

"Well, what about Sunday? If we did it on Sunday would it work better for you?"

"Um, well…Sunday isn't really a good day for me either," Fate scratched her cheek nervously. "But don't worry about it. You guys go and have fun. Maybe another time."

"Bummer... Well, I guess it can't be helped. Next time then!"

(Classroom)

"Well, that was interesting…" Hayate mused as her and Nanoha entered their classroom.

"In what way?"

"Well, for one, I finally got to meet this mystery person that you've been going on and on about. To be honest, she wasn't really what I expected." She saw Nanoha shoot her a look from her seat. Hayate took the opportunity to slip her friend a note.

"_When you said broody, I was sort of expecting tall, dark and handsome."_

Nanoha rolled her eyes and promptly scribbled a note back.

"_I never said that she was broody, and I certainty did not go 'on and on' about her. Besides, don't you think you're taking this a little too seriously?"_

Hayate smirked.

"_I heard from Suzuka that you and Fate had a little love collision the other day. Is that why you have a personal servant now? ;D"_

"_It's not like that! And it was all Arisa's idea."_

"_Was it? You know, that's pretty brilliant if I do say so myself. I wonder why I didn't think of it."_

Nanoha was so close to throwing the crumpled piece of paper at her friend, but the noise caught her teacher's attention first.

"Takamachi-san, do you have something to share with the class?"

Nanoha's face turned bright red. "No, I don't. I'm sorry…"

"I understand that you've injured your hand, but unless there is brain damage I expect you to pay attention."

"Yes Sensei."

When her teacher turned her back to the board, she glanced at Hayate and found the brunette holding up a piece of paper that just said: _Busted._

(Day End)

At the end of the day, Nanoha and Hayate gathered their things and left the class. To their surprise, Fate was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, where's your little helper? She was right on time for lunch." Hayate commented as she scanned the crowd. "You know I was thinking about earlier. You don't think I spooked her do you? Hmmm…maybe I went too far with those questions? Should I have spaced them out a bit more? You don't think she's avoiding us now do you?"

"Hayate, may I talk to you for a moment?"

"Huh?" The girl heard the tone in Nanoha's voice and immediately dropped the act. "Ah, yeah…Of course." She followed her friend's lead as they walked away from the stream of students. Once they were out of ear shot, Hayate's concern grew. "So…What's up?"

Nanoha took a deep breath. "I don't know what you heard from Suzuka, but I would appreciate it if you didn't refer to Fate in that way. She's not a servant. She's my friend, just like you and everyone else."

Hayate had her doubts, but looking into her friend's eyes told her that she was serious.

"Sorry Nanoha…I guess I got a little carried away." _To be honest, I never thought she would get this upset. _

She heard her sigh. "It just feels like everything's been blown out of proportion."

Hayate nodded to show she was listening. "Then, if you don't mind me asking, what happened exactly?" She noted the sudden apprehensiveness radiating from her friend. "I'm going to guess that you finally worked up the courage to talk to her?"

"Something like that."

_I was running late with my studies yesterday. Arisa and Suzuka wanted to wait for me but I told them that I would meet up with them later, so I was in a bit of a rush. That was when I saw her. What caught my eye was the glint of gold from her hair. She had just walked into one of the nearby classrooms._

_I've known for awhile that we both attended the same school. It's a little embarrassing, but when I found out it made me happy. It was also…a little awkward. I've suspected that this was this case, but our conversation earlier only confirmed my suspicions – she never noticed. _

_In any case, I was surprised that she was still at school. Whenever I saw her, it was late at the park. Due to personal reasons, I haven't been able to get away lately so I thought maybe this was a good time to say hello. But when I reached out for the door I was starting to have second doubts. What if she thought I was creepy or something? Then I heard footsteps and my mind blanked. Trust me. I really didn't expect to get clobbered by a door!_

"…And that's what happened." She finished. Hayate was carefully appraising her, but Nanoha supposed it couldn't be helped. She did get the Coles notes version of the story.

"So if I got this right, you meant to open the door but she beat you to it."

"Yup. So you see this entire thing was a complete misunderstanding."

"Well, except that." Hayate pointed to her wrist. Nanoha opened her mouth to say something in response, but that was when she noticed they had company. "Oh Fate! It's SO good to see you again!"

"What?" Nanoha whipped her head around. For a brief second she thought Hayate was pulling another escapade attempt but the red-eyed girl was actually there. "Fate," Nanoha greeted her. _Huh? Was she just running? _"What's wrong, you look a little out of breath."

"Nothing. Well actually…" she glanced at Hayate.

"Say no more. I was just on my way. I'll see you tomorrow." She winked to Nanoha and left the two girls alone.

Once she was sure the girl was gone, Fate leaned in and whispered,

"I had a question."

"Yes?" _Why is she whispering?_

"Something really important just came up. So do you mind if I…"

"Take the afternoon off?" Nanoha almost laughed at that. "No, of course not! You don't even have to ask, silly. Really, you shouldn't take things so seriously."

Fate looked skeptical. Nanoha may not have felt it, but there was definitely a dark presence shooting daggers into the back of her head at this moment.

"Thanks. Then I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yup."

Nanoha waved Fate good-bye. And as if on cue, Arisa showed up. The girl tried to stroll in casually, but to any plain person she was clearly failing.

"Nanoha." She called out to her friend.

"Ah, Arisa. Good afternoon."

"Good afternoon. By any chance, was that Testarossa that I just saw?"

Nanoha blinked. "Fate? Yeah, we were just talking. Why?"

"Oh, no reason. It just seemed like she was in a rush, that's all. Was she going somewhere?"

"I assume so. She said something came up, so…"

"But she didn't say what?"

"No?"

"I see…"

"Arisa, is there something you want to tell me?"

"Wha? No! It's nothing. I was just wondering where she was going, that's all." She started panicking a little when she saw her friend smile _that_ smile. "I-I mean, she did say she was going to help you out and all, and we all know how much you like to study after school. Lifting all those books at the library could be hard work, y'know?"

"Is that so? Well, I'm happy that you're concerned for my well being but I'm sure Fate has her reasons. I mean, what she does with her free time is none of our business right?"

"Right. Ahahaha…ha…" The green-eyed blonde watched her friend walk pass her. It was like her heart was about to beat out of her chest at any moment.

"Oh, I almost forgot."

"Y-Yes?"

"Have you seen Suzuka? She said she'd lend me her notes."

(School Yard)

"Did you get my text?" Arisa asked.

"Of course." Hayate shrugged as she shut her phone. "Hey, where's Suzuka?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, you two are normally joined at the hip. It's just kind of odd seeing just one of you."

Arisa frowned a little at that. "She's with Nanoha. Nanoha wanted to borrow some of her notes I guess."

"Is that so?" A smile tugged at Hayate's lips. "So what's the big emergency about? This doesn't have anything to do with the new girl, does it?"

"So what if it does? Look, I was just wondering how far you got with _that_."

"_That_ huh? Sorry, to be honest I've only just started. But if it makes you feel better I don't think there's going to be any problem with this one, so try to be a little more patient ne?"

"Hmph."

"Oooh? Is there more?"

Arisa met her gaze. "I want to know where Testarossa is going." For Arisa, the response was so blunt that Hayate didn't even blink an eye.

"Yeah, see, Arisa…I think you might want to consider letting this one go."

"Are you kidding me?" The blonde spat. "There's no way! Why should I?"

"Because you might make Nanoha upset."

The answer hit its mark and threw the girl off balance. It was written all over her face.

"She's not happy that you guilt-tripped Fate into helping her out." Hayate continued on. "In fact, when I talked to her she was pretty upset. I have to admit, this is going pretty far even for you. What exactly do you have against Fate Testarossa anyway?"

The girl didn't respond right away. Hayate noticed that she was shaking slightly.

"Don't tell me you've forgotten?" she said quietly.

"Arisa…"

"Just this one time, okay?" Arisa snapped back to normal. "I promise! I just want to be sure…"

Hayate gave her friend a long, hard look. "Fine," she sighed. "But if Nanoha finds out and gets mad then I'm blaming it all on you."

(Downtown)

Based on several sources and their own persistence, Hayate and Arisa managed to follow Fate all the way downtown. The girl had an earphone in each ear and seemed to be none the wiser that she was being followed.

"Crap, she's so fast." Hayate panted for breath. _Just what did I get myself into? I didn't think I was this out of shape! _"C-Can we take a break yet?"

"If we do that we'd lose her." She heard Hayate groan.

"I wonder where she's going anyway." The brunette muttered.

"That's what we're trying to find out."

"You don't suppose she's going to meet up with her boyfriend or something, do you?" Arisa ignored the comment.

_Now that I think about it…Fate mentioned something about being busy next weekend. I wonder if this has anything to do with it?_

"What? Shit!" She heard Arisa exclaim.

"What? What?"

Arisa narrowed her eyes at the crowd. Somehow their target had vanished. Without giving her friend any warning the blonde pushed her way through the crowd to the street corner. The light turned red, pissing the teen off even more. When it finally turned green again she raced across to where she spotted Fate last, but the effort was in vain. The girl was nowhere in sight.

"Dammit." Now she was pissed.

"Ariiiiisa…sheesh, what was that all about? Hey, where did Fate go?"

The blonde resisted the urge headbutt the metal pole beside her.

"We lost her…" she said.

"Hmmm…It looks like it, doesn't it? Well, that sucks."

"You don't sound very upset."

"Well, I guess that's because I'm sorta hungry. You know, sleuthing always works up an appetite." As if on cue her stomach growled.

Now that Arisa thought about it, she was also feeling a little hungry. "Yeah, you're right. Sorry for dragging you all the way out here for nothing. To make up for it how 'bout we grab something to eat? My treat."

"Really?" she saw the girl nod. "Wahoo, alright!"

"Was there anything you wanted in particular?"

"Mm…I don't know why, but I've been craving a Mc. Flab's burger all day."

Arisa cringed. She wasn't exactly fond of their food but she did say she would treat. The pair walked into the nearest Mc. Flab's restaurant and got into line.

_I still don't understand how we could've lost her. _Arisa thought to herself as the smell of frying oil assaulted her senses. _We managed to follow her by bus and over twelve blocks, and suddenly she disappears. Pfft! Well…I guess that serves me right for snooping. _

"Thank you for eating at Mc. Flab's. Please come again."

Arisa paused when she heard the voice. _What a sec, that sounds a lot like…_

"Welcome to Mc. Flab Burger, how may I serve you today-"

Startled red eyes met green. Fate blinked back as Arisa tried to process what she was actually seeing.

_Well now, isn't this awkward? _Hayate thought to herself as she watched the two girls gawk at one another. That was when she received a light tap on her shoulder. "Yes?"

"Ahem."

Hayate felt chills race down her spine as she hastily tapped on Arisa's shoulder to get the girl's attention. "U-Uh, Nanoha! Suzuka! W-What a coincidence! I didn't expect to run into you guys here, ahaha…haha…ha…"

_Gulp._

A moment later the four girls were sitting at one of the side booths. Nanoha and Suzuka sat on one side of the table while Hayate and Arisa shared the other.

"I can't believe you guys." Suzuka started. "You actually followed her?"

Hayate glanced to the purple-haired girl and then back to Nanoha. She didn't like how quiet the blue-eyed girl was.

"Well, it's not really like that." Hayate tried to explain. That seemed to catch Nanoha's attention. "Okay, okay…we followed her. BUT finding her was a total coincidence! I swear! We just came in here because it was close by and we were hungry."

"Is that so?"

"It's the truth."

Nanoha stood up. There seemed to be an air of exasperation about her. "We'll talk about this later. In the meantime, what does everyone want? We might as well eat since we're all here." She briefly met Arisa's eyes but the girl averted her gaze.

Much later, Fate was surprised that they were still hanging around when her first break was due. Through Suzuka's insistence, the girl ended up joining their group at the table.

"So Fate, I guess you work here?" Hayate asked. She still seemed to be eagerly working on her meal, all the while ignoring the dark presence beside her.

"Yeah, you could say that. I haven't been here for long though. I just started a couple of weeks ago."

"Really? Wow, I bet that must take up a lot of your time, huh?" It suddenly clicked. "Oh! Is that why you can't come next weekend?"

Fate nodded.

"Oh, I see, I see. That's too bad. Just out of curiosity, how often do you work? Is it just on the weekends or…?"

"Mm...It's mostly on the weekend, but if anything comes up during the week I try to help out when I can. It varies from week to week."

"Whaaaaat? No way! When do you find time to sleep?"

"During class?" She offered. Everyone had a good giggle at that. Though in the back of her mind Nanoha couldn't help but feel that Fate wasn't exactly joking when she said it.

_I see…So all those times we invited her to hang out and she refused, it wasn't because she was avoiding us. She was just busy working. I wonder why she works so much though… Does she really need the money?_

"Still, it's quite the coincidence bumping into all of you like this." Fate said.

"Yes, isn't it?" Suzuka agreed. Both Hayate and Arisa felt the unsaid jab. "Arisa, what's wrong? You've hardly touched your food."

The sulky girl glanced back but she seemed to be doing her best to avoid all eye contact. "I'm…working on it. I just have a bit of a stomach ache is all."

"Ouch. I hope you feel better soon." Fate said. She was surprised when the girl didn't try to snap her head off. "Anyway, I need to be getting back to work. I guess I'll see all of you at school?"

"Yeah, for sure." Hayate nodded.

As Fate stood to leave, she felt someone slip a piece of paper into her hand. When she returned to the cash register she opened it.

_Huh? What's this?_

"_Meet me at the park tonight after work?"_ Fate glanced over to the table where the friends were still chatting. She quietly slipped the piece of paper into her back pocket before she greeted the next customer.

(Park)

Fate had her reservations when she received the note. It was cold outside and she was tired and sore, but despite all of that she decided to oblige the request.

When she got there, she was pleasantly surprised to find Nanoha already waiting for her. From a distance she could tell that something was off. Usually when she ran into the girl she had this spaced out expression on her face. But this time, she appeared to be deep in thought.

"Nanoha."

"Hey, you came." Nanoha smiled as she watched the other girl take a seat beside her on the bench. "Sorry for calling you out so late."

"Don't worry about it. Were you waiting long?" She saw her shake her head. "So, where's everyone else?"

"Heh, sorry, but it's just me this time."

"Hmm…"

"Disappointed?"

"No comment." That earned a giggle from the brunette. "So…Was there something that you wanted to talk about?"

"Yeah…" There was that sober expression again. Fate waited patiently for the girl to continue. "I asked you to meet with me because I wanted to apologize."

"Apologize?"

"Yes. Not just for today but for yesterday too. My friends really are good people. They mean well but sometimes they can get a little carried away."

She looked over at Fate, but the girl didn't appear to be particularly upset.

"Oh, that. That's okay, don't worry about it."

"I'm serious. Not just about that, but this whole arrangement that you have going on with Arisa…" She bit her lip. She wasn't sure how she could say this without speaking badly of her friend. "Do you think…that you could forget about the whole thing? You're probably going to think this is really weird, but… if it's possible, I would like to be friends with you. And, um, it just feels really awkward when you're being forced to be nice to me."

Fate was silent. Nanoha was starting to worry that she had said something wrong.

"I mean-"

"I don't think that's it."

"Huh?"

The blonde didn't elaborate. "So, what you mean is that you want to hang out more or something? You know that I don't really have a lot of free time, right?"

"T-That's okay! I mean, whenever you have time and you want to hang out maybe we can get together and do something?"

The girl seemed to consider it. "I guess."

"Really?" Nanoha was interrupted by her phone vibrating in her pocket. She checked the caller ID and frowned. "I'm sorry, that was my parents. I have to go."

"I see. Then I guess I'll see you later?"

"Mm."

Fate watched her turn to leave. She stood up herself, ready to leave as well, when Nanoha called out to her again.

"Fate! I know I said this already but really, thank you for returning my gloves! I'll see you tomorrow!"

Fate watched the shorter girl run off. The sight reminded her of their first encounter, except she now had a name to call her by.

_Nanoha Takamachi…_

"Yeah, tomorrow I guess."

* * *

**Omake**

Fate actually knew she was being stalked all along but she didn't care.

"Arisa…don't you think you should tone down that dark aura? You might give us away."

"Don't be ridiculous! That dumb blonde won't know what hit her!"

Fate peeked in the direction of the dark aura. "I feel like there's a dark aura behind me. Oh well."


	4. The Glass is Half Empty

**Disclaimer****: **I do **not** own MLGN in any way.

* * *

_Even though I said we'd hang out sometime, I've been having doubts. _

"_Sorry, I have work today" or "You guys go ahead. Tell me about it later?" I feel like I'm starting to sound like a broken record. To be honest, I half-expected her to give up by now. But for some strange reason, she hasn't. _

* * *

Nanoha was feeling giddy. Fate said that she was assigned to closing shift today, so she had a few hours to spare. Today would be the first time that they would get to hang out.

"Any luck?" She asked. "If you can't find it, it's no big deal. I'm sure I can figure it out without it."

"Hold on. I'm still looking," Fate said, as she scanned the row of books before her. She checked the slip of paper again. "I don't understand it. It should be right here."

"Maybe you wrote it down wrong?"

"I'm pretty sure I didn't. But if you want to double check-" She looked down to see the blue-eyed girl staring across the room. "Nanoha?"

"Yes?"

"Umm…what are you doing?"

"I'm, uhh…waiting? Yeah, I'm just waiting." _Nothing wrong with that, right?_

"You aren't going to help me to look? It's your book, you know."

"I know, but…" Nanoha glanced out of her peripheral vision when she heard the blonde climbing the ladder again. She dared not look up. She couldn't.

_You aren't wearing spandex!_

She suddenly heard Fate gasp.

"Did you find it?"

"Yeah, I think so. It looks like someone moved it. Just give me a sec…"

Nanoha fidgeted as she waited. Fate sure seemed to be taking her time. That was when heard it-

"Wo-woah! Heads up!"

Nanoha shrieked when something smacked the floor beside her. Heart hammering in her chest, it took her a few seconds to realize that it wasn't a person but a book- one that had narrowly missed her.

There was a light cough and Fate was suddenly by her side looking a little apologetic. "Sorry," she said, as she bent down to pick up the book and hand it to her. "I tried to pull it out but it turned out to be heavier than I thought. You aren't hurt are you?"

"No, you just startled me that's all. But you had to admit, that was a close call."

"Yeah, but that's because you weren't paying attention."

_Hm. _Nanoha cracked a smile as they strolled back to their table. "Just so you know Fate, if I had to see Shamal again it would be your turn to tell her why."

The blonde paused in her step.

"And don't even think about using the flying ninja excuse. I already used that one."

They both sat down at a table where their homework was eagerly awaiting them. Nanoha immediately flipped open the book to its table of contents, but Fate hadn't moved. It wouldn't be long now.

Not even a minute later she heard the blonde sigh. "So, that's it? You aren't going to tell me?"

"Hm?"

"You know what I'm talking about. Flying ninjas? There's no way she'd believe something like that."

Nanoha heard the implication. Oh, she was going to enjoy this.

"Well, actually…I hate to tell you this Fate, but I wasn't lying."

"You weren't lying about…which part?"

"All of it."

The truth was a wonderful thing - especially when it popped brain cells.

"Let's just say that when you have crazy friends like I do, almost anything is possible. ANYWAY break time's over. Let's get back to our studies shall we? I see you still have a pile to do." She gestured to the giant stack of papers on Fate's side of the table.

If it weren't so embarrassing, Fate would have sulked. "Yes mother…"

"Mom would do just fine."

"Pff…"

The two of them worked in silence for about a half an hour. Every so often Nanoha would look up to see how her friend was doing. Fate seemed to be making progress with whatever she was working on, but she could tell that she was distracted. She had an idea of what the issue was, so she wasn't surprised when Fate spoke up.

"Hey, Nanoha, can I ask you something?"

"Hm?"

"Well, it's just…This might seem like a really silly question, but why are we doing homework?"

"Hmm…could it be because it's good for you?"

"Huh?"

"They say that it stimulates your inner academic nerd and nurtures our mental development. You know, like teaching you how to think for yourself even if the problems really aren't practical. Or maybe it's because we're told that we have to do it. What do you think? Oh! Or maybe…Fate, could it be that studying is the love of your life and you can't go a day without it?" Nanoha had said it all with a straight face, but she could no longer hold in her laughter after seeing the red-eyed girl's deadpanned expression.

"Nanoha…"

"Nyahaha, sorry…" _Sorta. _"Jokes aside, I guess I can't really blame you for being disappointed."

"That's not-" She saw Nanoha raise her hand and allowed the girl to continue.

"I was going to say that, considering all of the places we invited you to this was probably the last place you expected to be, right?"

"Well, maybe a little…" She admitted. "You really take your studies seriously, don't you Nanoha?"

"Hm? Where did you hear that?"

"Well…let's just say I heard it from a little birdie."

"Oh really?" It suddenly made sense_._ "What color was this little 'birdie'?"

"Does it matter?"

"Hmm…I guess not." Nanoha made a mental note to ask her friends about it later. "But to answer your question, hypothetically, it might be true."

That seemed to pique Fate's interest. "So you really study here every day after school?"

"Not every day, but often enough. On the weekends though, I try to use the public library when I can."

"Oh, I see." She paused, quietly digesting this piece of information. "What about everyone else?"

"What about them?"

"Well, I mean, with how energetic you guys are at lunch, you'd think you'd all be in here having a party or something."

"Ah…Well, I think we tried doing that once but it ended up being too distracting."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, we just ended up talking. Nothing really got done."

"Ah."

"It still works out though." She continued. "If we make plans for the day, I usually meet with them after I'm done here."

"Is that so?"

"Yup! So that's why…" She waited until she had Fate's undivided attention. "I wouldn't be offended if you wanted to leave."

Fate froze, having trouble processing what she had just heard. Taking Fate's silence as an answer, Nanoha continued.

"I mean, it's totally understandable. You finally have some free time and instead of going out and doing something like I said we would I dragged you here. It's not fair. And it's not like we can't reschedule, right?"

"We could," Fate said carefully, and met the expectant gaze. "But if it's okay with you, I'd rather not. I actually had a lot to get done anyway, so maybe this turned out for the best. Besides, it's not like we can't do anything afterwards, right?"

Blue eyes lit up at that. "Yeah, of course!"

Both girls dove back into their school work, and before long another hour of amicable silence had passed by. Nanoha saw the signs immediately. She knew that Fate meant well by staying but she thought the girl had a funny way of showing her boredom; she could feel her eyes staring at her, even while she was reading.

"What's up?"

"Hm?"

Nanoha hadn't even looked up. She flipped the page. "You're staring."

"Am I?"

"Mhmm…Something on your mind?"

Fate leaned back in her seat and sighed. "I was just thinking how weird it was seeing you with glasses."

The hand that was flipping pages stopped. "You really think so? It's not uncommon, you know. A lot of people wear glasses."

"I know, but still…" Fate watched Nanoha put the book down and also sit back. She took off the red spectacles and peered at them with an appraising eye.

"You know what I think?" Fate tilted her head in response. "I think I like them. They're kind of stylish don'tcha think?"

"I guess?" That earned her a pout. "But if you need glasses, why don't you wear them all the time?"

"Because my eyesight isn't that bad. I just find that they help when I'm reading, that's all." She put them back on. "I'm going to guess that you're one of those lucky people who have perfect 20/20 vision?"

Fate made a happy hum, and Nanoha smiled.

"Lucky."

"It's genetics."

"Well then, since someone's feeling so lucky, did you figure out the answer to problem 4 yet?"

"Yup~"

"What? No way, let me see."

Without batting an eye, Fate held up her notebook for her to see. "See? You balance the chemical equation first. Like this," she pointed. "Then with the moles you can find the molar ratios and figure out which reactant is the limiting reagent. Based on this we can figure out how much product is formed."

It was like a light bulb finally lit up in the brunette's head.

"Oooh…Now I see where I went wrong. Heh, so much for looking it up," she closed the book and began to fix her answer. "Why didn't you say something sooner?"

Fate shrugged. "You looked busy."

Nanoha began to flip through the rest of the girl's notebook. "Wait a second…" She flipped faster. "You're already done?" She gave the girl an incredulous look.

"Yeah, I finished about 20 minutes ago." There was a long pause. For some inexplicable reason Fate was beginning to feel nervous under that gaze. "Did you…want to copy it?"

Nanoha was sorely tempted to; Chemistry really wasn't her best subject.

"No," she finally said and handed Fate back her book. "There are only, what? Seven questions? I'll figure it out myself. But would you mind if I checked my answers with yours once I'm done?"

"Sure, I don't mind."

Knowing that Fate had already finished spurred Nanoha to hurry and finish herself. The last thing she wanted was for the girl to get bored and leave. She became so invested in her work that she must have lost track of time because she then heard a peculiar sound.

Nanoha stopped scribbling when she heard a soft snore. Looking up she could scarcely believe her eyes.

_She…fell asleep sitting up?_ The blue eyed girl wasn't sure whether she should be impressed or annoyed that Fate was having a nice nap while she was sweating over homework.

_Well, then again, I guess I can't really blame her. She's been working so hard lately… Still, I wish she didn't fall asleep like that. It can't be a very comfortable position to sleep in, and she might wake up all stiff and sore. I'll just give her a little nudge and wake her up._

"Fate?" she whispered.

"Zzzz…"

"Earth to Faaaaate, wake up."

"Zzzz…zzz…"

For some reason Nanoha felt a strong urge to doodle on the girl's face, but in the end she thought against it. Instead, she began tearing chunks off of her eraser and started to throw the pieces at the blonde's forehead. One piece happened to miss and hit her nose instead.

"Zzzz – snrk-zzz…"

Nanoha noticed that her leg twitched that time. She smiled when a thought came to mind. Carefully, Nanoha slid forward in her seat until her toe pressed against Fate's ankle. Smile widening a touch, she watched the girl's expression as she slowly trailed up her leg. "Mm…" Fate's brow started to furrow. The instant Nanoha's foot brushed against the back of her knee Fate's eyes shot open – she gasped loudly and jolted so badly that her knee rocketed into the bottom of the table.

_**Bam!**_

"Ngh_-!_"

_Oh…so she's ticklish after all._ Nanoha silently thought to herself.

"Did you have a nice nap?" She asked cheerfully. Teary, red-eyes glared back. "By the way, I'm done now."

"And?" Fate muttered while rubbing her poor knee.

"We got the same answers. You know, you're pretty smart Fate." Nanoha expected the girl to return the comment with a sarcastic remark, but instead she looked taken aback.

_Fate?_

Fate quickly blinked away the remaining tears in her eyes. "Thanks, but my grades are only average. My sis is the smart one in the family."

"You have a sister?"

"Mm." She nodded. "Her name's Alicia. She's older than me."

"Oh cool. I didn't know you had any siblings. Are there others or is it just the two of you?"

Fate smiled at the question. "Sorry, it's just the two of us."

"Oh, I see, I see. So? What's she like?"

"What's she like? Umm…well, you know, like any older sister I guess." After a second thought, she added, "She takes things very seriously."

"Ah…I see. My sis is like that too."

"You have an older sister too?"

"Yup! I have an older brother and sister, so I totally get being the younger sibling thing. Hey, you know what? This means we're both the youngest." She said excitedly.

Fate returned a small smile. "It looks like it."

For a moment they both sat there, each in their own thoughts.

"Hey, Fate, can I ask you a question?"

"Yeah?"

"What do you want to be when you grow up?"

"Huh? Where did this come from?"

"I don't know." She shrugged. "I was just thinking that, since this is our last year and all…Well, it's just - it seems like everyone I've talked to already knows what they want to do. So I was kind of wondering what your thoughts were on the topic."

There was a thoughtful expression on her face as she considered the question. After awhile, Fate answered,

"To be honest…I don't really know. I haven't really thought about it. What about you?"

"Same."

It might have been the way she said it, but Fate didn't look convinced.

"I wouldn't worry about it too much." She said. "You still have time to figure out what you want to do, right? And besides, if anything, I'm sure you can be anything you want to be Nanoha. You put a lot of effort into your studies."

Nanoha blinked. It was a small smile, but to Fate it seemed infinitely brighter.

"Yeah, I know. But the same goes for you too." She suddenly stood up and stretched. "Anywaaaaay, we've been sitting around for awhile. What do you say we leave this place and go do something?"

"Sure, sounds good to me."

They quickly packed their things and left.

* * *

"_What do you want to be when you grow up?"_

Fate repeatedly found herself being drawn to the question even as the two of them were out walking.

_The truth is… I used to think about it a lot. Like Nanoha said, some people just seem to know what they want to be. In a way, a part of me is envious of those people; I'm sure when I was little there were a lot of things that I wanted to be too. _

_It doesn't seem like it wasn't meant to be though. Even though we're identical twins, Alicia has always been the smarter one. I don't hate her for it, but it's probably one of the reasons why mom favours her so much. …With the grades I have, I don't think there are too many opinions available for me._

Fate heard humming beside her and turned to look at the shorter girl. There was a strange bounce to her step.

"You seem happy."

"Mhm! I can't help it. It's so warm out today."

"Now that you mention it…it is kind of warm. Hopefully it'll melt some of the snow."

"Why? You don't like snow?"

"Not really."

"Why not?"

"Because it's cold."

"Ah… could it be that Fate gets cold easily? My mom always said that wearing an extra sweater helps, especially if it's wool. Er, you don't want to know what Hayate says," she added as an afterthought.

"You're right, I don't." Fate agreed. Knowing the other girl it would either be something extremely bizarre or horrific.

"So?" Nanoha asked again.

"Hm?"

"That didn't sound like the only reason."

_Very perceptive, _Fate thought. "Okay. How about this? It's heavy."

"Hm? Heavy?"

"Well, haven't you ever shovelled your walk before?"

"No, I can't say that I have." Fate was looking at her as though she had sprouted an extra head.

"Really? No jokes?"

Nanoha slowly nodded. "I've never done it personally, but it sounds like hard work. I'm guessing you do it?"

"All the time."

_Well, she did say that she was the youngest of three. Maybe her older brother and sister take care of it?_

"On the bright side, I guess that means you have really strong arms now, right?" Nanoha grinned.

"Tell you what. Since you love snow so much, next snowfall you can come over and shovel our walk. I'll even let you do it for free. Who knows, you might even gain some muscles."

Nanoha laughed. "No, no, that's okay. Thanks for the offer though. Besides, I think I like looking at it more." She saw Fate tilt her head. "What? It's pretty."

"Before or after it becomes brown slush?"

Nanoha lightly punched her arm.

"Ow…"

"You're no fun."

"Sorry…"

Maybe she should have kept her big mouth shut, but Fate could see the gears turning inside of Nanoha's head. Without any warning, the girl dashed forward.

"Fate, over here!"

Fate followed her until she came to a pathway. In the warmer months there would normally be a lawn of green grass to either side of the path, but now it was covered by a thick layer of non-compacted snow.

"What is it?"

"This." Nanoha proudly gestured to the side.

"What? Snow?" Fate asked in disbelief.

"Yup." To Fate's amazement, the girl then waded into it. "In the winter there are actually a lot of things that you can do because we have snow. You can go skating, skiing, tobogganing…Every season has something different to offer."

"Yeah, so?"

"Well, we can't do any of those things right now…but we can do this." She turned to face the blonde and allowed herself to fall back first into the powdered stuff. Fate watched in curiosity as she swung her arms and legs briefly before standing up again.

"Ta-dah! Well? What do you think?"

"It's umm…" Fate cleared her throat. "Well, it's something." She almost felt bad for asking this. "What is it?"

Nanoha pouted. "It's a snow angel. Can't you tell?"

The red-eyed girl bent sideways. If she looked at it at the right angle…No, she couldn't see it. With that side ponytail it still looked like a Snow-Nanoha.

"Where's the halo?"

Nanoha drew a halo above its head. "There. Better?"

The girl shrugged. When Nanoha wouldn't budge from her spot, Fate was beginning to wonder what that expectant look meant.

"What?"

"Aren't you going to do one?"

"Umm…no, that's okay." _That would involve getting in the snow._

"But it's no fun doing it alone."

Fate still didn't look enthusiastic, but Nanoha could tell that the girl was thinking it over. One more nudge should do it.

"I reeeeeeally wanted to see one of Fate's snow angels. I bet it would look really good. Maybe even as good as mine."

She was pleasantly surprised this time when the blonde waded in after her.

"I can do better."

"Oh?"

Nanoha watched expectantly as the girl fell into snow the back first. But she didn't stop there. Fate got up again and fell twice more in different positions. None of them looked like snow angels.

_What's that supposed to be?_

"Nanoha," Fate got up and waved for her to come forward. "Can you come over here? I need your help."

"Okay, sure thing."

Nanoha stepped forward until she was directly facing the girl.

"Now can you stand here?"

"Here?"

"Wait. No…move a little more to the left?"

"You mean here?"

Fate had a contemplative look on her face. "Yes, I think this will do."

"Great. So what am I supposed to do-Woah!" Nanoha yelped when Fate suddenly pushed her.

Fate held a hand to her chin as she examined her work. Nanoha was lying flat on her back squarely between the three other figures she had made earlier.

"I call it…three murdered people and a corpse. What do you think?"

Narrowed blue eyes glared up at her.

"Nyahaha…you're still angry for what happened at the library, aren't you?" She stretched her arms out expectantly.

"What?"

"Help me up?"

"Nope. You're a corpse remember?"

"Please?"

"No way."

"Pretty please?" She gave her the best puppy dog look she had.

Fate crossed her arms over her chest. "Sorry, but I know how this works. The moment I get close you're just going to grab me and pull me in. No thanks."

Nanoha feigned hurt. "You really think I'd do something like that? Please? Faaaaate, I swear I won't."

Fate eyed her carefully. "Do you really mean that?"

"Yup!" She heard Fate sigh.

Nanoha wiggled happily as Fate stepped forward. However, the moment their hands clasped together the brunette dug her heel into the ground and yanked HARD sending her victim flying face first into the snow.

"Omph!"

"Nyahahahaha!"

"Y-You liar! You said you wouldn't do that!" Fate sputtered as she tried to wipe the snow off of her face. To the brunette it was an adorable sight.

"I didn't lie. But I did cross my fingers." She shuffled to get into a more comfortable position and heard the blonde grumble something under her breath. "Hmmm…does someone need a hug?"

"No, that's not necessary."

Nanoha shrieked when she felt a handful of snow go down her coat and down her shirt.

"Omigosh!Omigosh!Omigosh! COLD!" She leapt to her feet and danced around, trying to shake it out. She stopped when she heard Fate giggling away.

"Hm? Oh no, please don't stop on my account."

Nanoha's face went dark.

"Oh Faaaaaate." She sang sweetly.

"Yes?"

_**SPLAT!**_

Fate blinked. Oooooooh, Nanoha so did NOT just throw that snowball.

"Okay…you're SO going to pay for that!"

With inhuman speed she dashed forward and tackled Nanoha to the ground. The girl squealed as they wrestled around, each trying to avoid receiving snow down the shirt while dealing one to the other. Needless to say, at the end of the day they both failed miserably.

Lying side by side, Nanoha panted out,

"Okay…I'm cold now."

"Yeah, me too."

She looked over at her red eyed companion. "Want to get something to drink? My treat?"

* * *

After some walking, the two girls eventually found themselves at one of the local cafés.

"Midori-ya.' Fate said as she read the overhanging sign.

"Yup," Nanoha nodded. "Have you ever been here before, Fate?"

"No, I haven't. Is it good?"

Nanoha's smile grew. "Of course it is! In fact, I can personally guarantee it. C'mon, let's go in."

After taking up one of the side booths, Nanoha excused herself to get their order. At the front counter there was a dark-browned haired, green eyed girl wearing an apron. Her long hair was tied back in a ponytail and she looked to be at least several years older than Nanoha. The moment their eyes met, she broke out into a big smile.

"Nanoha!"

"Miyuki."

"I thought it was you. So, what are you doing here? You didn't come to help out did you?" She glanced over to the booth.

Nanoha looked apologetic. "Well, no, but…"

The older girl chuckled. "You're always so serious. It's okay. Don't worry about it. It's just nice to see that you're finally making some new friends."

"Yeah…"

"So, what can I get you?"

Fate looked up as Nanoha returned to her seat. In her hand were two cups of hot chocolate.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

"It was no problem." Fate looked down as a cup was slid to her. "Besides, it gave me some time to dry off." The hand paused.

"Whatever you say Fate." Nanoha smiled as she took her seat. "Now drink up before it gets cold."

Fate brought the cup to her lips and blew at the hot surface. After she was sure she wasn't going to burn her tongue, she took a sip. It was warm and quite delicious – the contented sigh she made didn't go unnoticed by the other girl.

"Good?"

"Uh huh." She took a few more sips before either of them spoke again.

"Can I ask you something Nanoha?"

"Hmmm?" The girl hummed.

"That girl over there…do you know her?"

Nanoha turned to follow Fate's gaze. She was looking at the counter.

"Ah, yeah…that's Miyuki. She's my sister."

Fate looked taken aback. "Your older sister?"

"Yeah, I know. We don't really look alike, right?"

"Well…You sorta do."

"My hair colour," Nanoha pointed, "is from my mom's side. For whatever reason, I'm the only one who got it. Both of my older siblings take more after my dad."

"Oh, I see…" In the sunlight, it looked a little redder than usual. Not sure what else to say, Fate said, "It's a pretty colour. I bet it makes a lot of people envious."

A blush crossed the girl's face. "Well, I don't know about that, but thanks."

Fate was almost done her drink when she noticed the pair of blue eyes across from her looking at her intently.

"Is something wrong?"

"Hm? No, not really."

"Then, is there something on my face?"

"Nope, it's nothing like that. I was just thinking, that's all."

"About?"

"Oh you know…About the sleepover this weekend and how you aren't going to be there."

Red eyes were downcast. "Yeah…I'm really sorry about that, but I can't. I have work."

"I know, but still…it would have been nice if you could make it." She seemed to hesitate at what she was about to say. "I mean, they won't let you work at any other time?"

The look on Fate's face was unreadable. Nanoha worried that she crossed the line somewhere in there.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

"No, it's okay. Don't worry about it."

"But you know what? That wasn't the only thing I was thinking about."

"Hm?"

"I was also thinking about earlier today. Like the look on your face when you fell in the snow."

Fate twitched. "You mean after you pulled me in."

"What? I don't know what you're talking about." That earned her something like a snort. "Besides, you were asking for it." She said in a matter-of-factly voice.

"And why do you say that? If I recall, I said I didn't like snow."

"Right. And that's what you get for being a pessimist."

"Wha-? I am not a pessimist!" She saw the look Nanoha was giving her. "I'm not!"

A thoughtful look crossed the girl's face. There was a scraping noise as Nanoha slid her cup across the table. Fate looked at the cup, then back at her companion questioningly.

"Question: Is the cup half empty or half full?"

"Empty?" _You drank half of it…_

The little pause and the happy smile on Nanoha's face made Fate suddenly feel like she gave the wrong answer.

"W-What? What's so funny?"

"You just proved my point."

"What point?"

"That you have a pessimistic view."

"Okay…?"

"Basically, look at it this way. This cup is both half empty and half full. There's no right or wrong answer, but the answer can be a little different depending on how you look at it. For example, an optimistic person would say that it's half full. While a pessimist would say-"

"That it's half empty. Oh okay, I get it. So… that makes me a bad person, right?"

Nanoha's happy expression gave way to shock. "What?" To her horror she saw Fate raise her hands to cover her face.

"You hate me now, right?" she sniffed.

In a heartbeat Nanoha leapt to the other side of the table. "No! No, Fate…That's not what I meant. I don't hate you at all. All I meant was that, well, you know…you just…have a different perspective, which isn't bad or anything, or well, maybe just a little but…but…" Her words trailed off as the hands were lowered and a bright, sparkly smile was revealed.

"You know, for what it's worth, I think the pessimists have more fun."

This time, brain cells did die.

"Jerk! I'm never talking to you again!" She shoved the girl hard and stomped back to her side of the table as the other girl chuckled.

"But you just did."

"What?"

"See?"

Fate laughed as Nanoha turned a darker shade of red. The brunette tried to hold her grudge, she really tried, but it failed miserably in the face of the blonde's contagious laughter. Soon she couldn't help but giggle as well.

Before long, Nanoha noticed that Fate was checking her watch.

"Do you need to go?"

"Yeah, I'm afraid so. If I don't get going I'm going to be late." She stood up, prompting Nanoha to stand as well. "So…"

"So…"

They both looked at one another awkwardly.

"Umm…so, how much do I owe you?"

"For…? Oh, the drink? Nothing, I said it was my treat, remember?"

"Yeah, but…Mm…"

"It's okay, really. Think of it as a…I'm-sorry-for-shoving-snow-down-your-shirt apology."

"Except you're not really sorry about that, are you?" She pointed out.

"Small details," Nanoha laughed, and walked her to the door. "You know, I had a lot of fun today."

"Really?"

"Yeah, like, three murdered people and a corpse? Where did you get that one?"

"I don't know…It just sort of happened. Anyway…"

"Yeah, you better go." Nanoha opened the door for her and watched her step out. For a second, she hesitated.

"Fate? Can we hang out again sometime?"

The girl blinked back, unsure if she heard what she thought she heard. A warm look then entered her burgundy eyes.

"Sure. But next time it'll be my treat, okay?"

"Okay!"

Fate waved as she left. Before she was out of ear shot, she heard the girl shout,

"Try not to miss me too much! You better not forget!"

Fate snorted, "As if!" she shouted back.

As she walked away, Fate couldn't shake the strange, warm feeling lingering in her chest. She hadn't laughed like that in a long time. It felt kind of nice.

Before she knew it, she was considering the sleepover again. She wasn't sure how she felt about the prospect of hanging out with Arisa, but Nanoha was going to be there and Suzuka and Hayate seemed nice enough. She thought about what Nanoha asked her before.

"_I mean, they won't let you work at any other time?"_

_Since I'm always working, I've never really had the time to hang out with people. For that reason, I guess that's why everyone always losses interest. But, maybe it's more than that. Maybe Nanoha's right. _It felt like her mind was clear now. _I thought 'that's just the way things are', and everyone just accepted it. Did I ever make an effort to do something about it?_

She thought about Nanoha's suggestion again. There was a determined look in her eyes; she could try.

It wasn't until several hours later when Hayate received a call from Fate Testarossa.


	5. In Mutual Hate We Trust

**A/N: **Hey everyone! I'm sorry for not updating sooner. I realize that this is a long overdue update, but I've been busy with a number of things. Regardless, I still hope you will enjoy this chapter.

**Disclaimer:** I do **not** own MLGN in any way.

* * *

At the Testarossa household, the loud ringing of an alarm clock broke the early morning silence.

Fate sat at a small table in the kitchen. She had a hot mug of coffee in one hand, and was leisurely reading a newspaper in the other. The blonde paused in her reading and looked up when her twin strolled into the room. Unlike her, the girl was wearing a long, blue night-shirt and was sporting a head of messy, bed-hair.

"Morning Alicia." She was greeted by the typical grunt. "Are you going to be going to library again, today?"

"Mhmm…"

She watched as the other girl reached up for a clean coffee cup.

"You know that your underwear is showing, right?"

"Uhhuh."

Fate smiled at the predictable response. Her smile grew a touch more when the other girl began to blindly fumble the counter in search of the elusive coffee pot.

"A little to your right. More…a little more…There you go, good girl." Fate beamed as she watched as her sister down the drink in several large gulps.

"Haha, very funny." Alicia attempted a stern look but instead gave into a yawn. After blinking away the tears she noticed the amused look Fate was shooting her way.

"What?"

"Nothing." Fate quickly stood up and carried her cup to sink where she proceeded to wash it.

"Okay…?"

"It's nothing really. Besides, even if I told you, you'd just get mad at me."

"You mean…" She heard Fate hum and dropped the topic like a ton of bricks. "Yeah, so anyway…why're _you_ up so early? Don't tell me they called you into work again."

"Nope." Fate happily replied. "Well, actually I was scheduled for a shift today but something came up so I asked someone to trade with me."

"Oh? Is everything okay?" With piqued curiosity, Alicia followed her sister to the door where she watched her slip on her jacket and shoes.

"Yeah, everything's fine. I'm just going out to meet some friends. That's all."

"You mean Chrono? Tell him I say hi."

"Friend_s_, sis. C'mon, you're supposed to be the smart one."

"Chrono and… Amy?"

Fate shook her head. "Sorry, not this time. I have other friends too, y'know?"

Alicia raised an eyebrow.

"Do tell. Anyone I know?"

"Well, I'm not sure if you know them, but they go to our school. Do you know Nanoha Takamachi?"

"Takamachi?"

"Yeah. She has red hair and blue eyes? Her hair is always up in a side-ways ponytail." She saw the blank look and said, "Never mind. Anyway, her friends invited me to hang out with them today."

"Is that so? Is that why you rearranged your work schedule?"

"Mm."

"I see. Well, that was nice of them…"

"Yeah," Fate pushed her foot into her sneaker and stood up. "Kay, I guess I'll be going now. Don't want to be late. Can you lock the door behind me? Thanks!"

Fate barely made it down the front steps when Alicia stopped her.

"Wait. Fate! When you get home later, do you want to do something?" The younger twin blinked back in surprise. "It's just, the both of us have been so busy lately so I was thinking it would be nice if we could spend some time together."

Fate's eyes softened at that.

"Sorry…I'd really like to, but I've already made plans for this evening. They invited me over for a sleepover too, so…"

"Oh…"

"Maybe another time?"

"Yeah, okay." She said it was okay but Fate could see that it wasn't.

"Alicia-"

At that moment they both heard a tortured moan, followed by the dragging of footsteps.

"Coffeeeee…"

"Oh for-" Alicia's face twisted in disgust, but Fate couldn't stop the grin breaking out across her face.

"Have fun with Zombie Number 1."

"Hey, take that back! We're nothing alike! FATE!" she was cut off when a hand from behind tightly gripped down on her shoulder.

"Coffeeeee…?"

Fate heard shouting and giggled to herself as she ran off.

_So far, so good. _She thought. When she had called Hayate earlier to say that she could make it she was full of confidence then. But now, there was a small pang of anxiety in her heart. The only time she was able to hang out with Nanoha and her friends was during lunch. What if the other girls got to know her and decided that they didn't want to be friends with her after all?

She wondered why she had made that phone call in the first place, and immediately thought of her recent outing with Nanoha. She hoped today would also be a good day.

* * *

The group of four friends were patiently sitting in one of the resting areas of the mall. Nanoha and Suzuka sat at one bench and were in a deep discussion about their last cram school lesson, while Arisa and Hayate were hunched over in the corner two benches over.

"Arisa, are you sure this can't wait?" Hayate nervously glanced over her friend's shoulder to see if the duo suspected anything.

"No, it can't." She said flatly. "Especially since Testarossa is going to be joining us today – a fact that you conveniently left out if I might add."

"Eh hehe…What can I say? It just happened to slip my mind. I must be getting old~"

"Is that why you haven't told Nanoha yet?"

"Nano-who?" Arisa glared down at her, just daring her to continue that excuse. "Jeez, can't take a joke can you?" she mumbled as she withdrew her handy-dandy notebook. "Here. This was all I could get."

Arisa took the offered handbook. But when she flipped it open to the first page she nearly had a heart attack.

"W-What the hell is _that_?" She spat. On the page there was a sketch of Fate Testarossa in a two-piece bikini suit doing a captain's salute. She almost missed the messy text scribbled all around it.

"What do you think? It's pretty good isn't it? I think I'm improving." The blue-eyed girl laughed as she watched her friend turn a deeper shade of red.

"J-Just read it already." Arisa said in exasperation as she shoved the booklet back into the brunette's hands.

"Awww…well, if you insist." Hayate cleared her throat. "Let's see…Fate Testarossa. Blonde, red eyed female…"

"Skip."

"Doesn't really watch T.V., her favorite colour is black."

"Skip. C'mon Hayate, quit messing around. Get to the important parts already."

"Right, right…Acquaintances. So according to the grape vine, she often hangs out with Chrono Harlaown. Some speculated that they were dating for awhile, but I can't really confirm that."

"Harlaown…" Arisa chewed her bottom lip thoughtfully. "Okay, what else do you got?"

"Nothing."

"What?"

"Meaning…that's it."

"Hayate, if you're holding anything back-"

Hayate held her hands up defensively. "I'm not. Seriously, outside of that it looks like our girl is a loner. Oh, but get this. She has a twin sister. Alicia Testarossa," Hayate pulled out a photograph. Arisa stared at it, but the person in the picture looked like Fate. It took a second for it to click.

"Wait a second!"

"Shuuuuuush!"

"You mean there are two of them?" she hissed in a lower voice.

"Indeed. But compared to Fate, they say she's practically a genius. Doesn't seem too friendly though, hmm…They definitely seem like a family that keeps to themselves but other than that I don't think she'll be a problem. In my honest opinion, she passes."

Any protest that Arisa was about to say was cut off by a shuffling of bodies behind them. Hayate hurriedly fumbled to hide the notebook.

"How are you guys enjoying the view?" Suzuka asked.

"The view?"

"The view that you said you just had to stop and admire? I mean, that is the reason why we're still waiting around, isn't it?"

"OH. THAT view. Um, it's great. Yeah, we could look at it forever," Hayate sharply elbowed Arisa to get the girl to agree. The purple-haired girl resisted to the urge to roll her eyes.

"Uh huh."

"Well, are you guys done yet? What are we waiting for anyway?" Nanoha asked a little impatiently.

"Um, well, no, not really…we're um…" As Hayate fumbled for an excuse, any excuse, until she spotted a confused blonde wading through the crowds. "Oh, would you look at that. Our guest of honour has finally arrived."

Nanoha turned to see who she was referring to. The moment she saw Fate her face lit up.

"Fate!"

The red-eyed girl barely looked up when she was almost knocked off of her feet by an enthusiastic hug.

"Oof! N-Nanoha?" Fate went stiff as a board at the unexpected greeting. Thankfully, the girl seemed to notice and quickly released her.

"Ohh…be careful there, Fate. Once you get Nano-hugged it's all over. She will never let you go." Hayate teased. Nanoha rolled her eyes at the brunette before turning her attention back to Fate.

"Don't listen to her Fate. She's exaggerating." Hayate muttered, 'that's what you think', but Nanoha ignored her. "Anyway, what happened? I thought you said you weren't coming today because you had work." Her expression suddenly shifted to concern. "Wait, did something happen? You didn't get fired did you?"

"What? No! I asked my boss if I could switch shifts with someone and someone was willing to trade with me. That's all."

Nanoha looked relieved. "Really? That's great! It was really nice of them to do that."

"Yeah, just…don't expect it to happen too much, okay?"

"So that's how it is, hmmm? Why don't you just tell her the truth already?" Hayate stepped in.

"Eh?"

"You really came all this way to see _this_ bright little bundle of sunshine, didn't you?" Hayate wrapped her arm around Arisa's shoulders. The sour look on the girl's face only fuelled the quick laughter that followed.

"Um, well…" Fate searched for something to say. "It's good to see you too Arisa."

"_Stuff it_."

"Now, now…We're all happy that Fate was able to make it today, right?" Suzuka said, promptly shutting the other girl up. She turned her attention back to Fate. "You have good timing. We were just about to decide what we wanted to do. Did you have any suggestions?"

"Oh umm…I hadn't really thought about it."

"Okay. Well, is there anything you like to do?" she asked again.

"It doesn't really matter. I'm okay with anything you guys decide."

"We could go do karaoke." Hayate suggested.

"Yeah, but we just went yesterday…" Arisa pointed out.

"Hmm…How about a movie then?"

They all took a moment to consider the idea.

"A movie might be nice…" Suzuka finally said. "What do you think, Nanoha?"

"Hm? Well, I really have nothing against going to see a movie, but since this is the first time we've all been able to get together I was thinking it might be nice if we actually _did_ something, you know?"

Suzuka nodded in understanding. "Like…?"

Nanoha sighed. Hayate eyed all of them with narrow eyes.

"We could alwaaaays go the arcad-"

"NO." They all cut her off.

"Haaaa…I didn't think so, but it was worth a shot."

"Huh? Huh?" Fate looked around at the annoyed faces.

"It's nothing, Fate. They're just jelly of my mad skillz." Hayate gestured.

"You wish." Arisa interrupted. "You only won last time because of pure luck."

"And the other ten times?" she grinned.

As Arisa launched into a long rant about why each of those times were all luck, Suzuka decided to fill Fate in.

"You see, Hayate has a habit of making bets. So whenever we go to the arcade the loser treats everyone to lunch. But the thing is, is that she has this unreal lucky streak, so none of us have been able to beat her."

"Oh, I see." Fate nodded in sudden understanding. "So that's why you guys never want to play against her."

"You could say that. Especially poor Nanoha here." The girl giggled. "If memory serves me correct, she lost the last few rounds."

Nanoha blushed. "H-Hey, that wasn't my fault! You guys ganged up on me!"

Suzuka said nothing in response, but continued to smile that charming smile of hers.

"Speaking of which, how good are you at video games Fate?" Suzuka asked sweetly.

"Suzuka…" Nanoha warned. "Sorry to disappoint you, but Fate here is going to be on my team!" The girl declared as she wrapped an arm around the blonde's elbow.

"I am?"

"You don't want to?"

There was that puppy dog look again, but Fate resisted.

"Mm…I think I'll need to think about it."

Nanoha looked a little taken aback. "Oh. Well, that's okay. I know I'm not very good, so you don't have to team up with me if you don't want to." She said, suddenly looking embarrassed.

Fate didn't want to say it, but it was the possibility of losing such a bet that made her hesitate. Having to treat everyone to a meal seemed a bit expensive. Would they hold it against her if she didn't want to participate?

"It's not that." She said. "It's just, I'm not much of a gamer myself so I don't think I'd be of much help."

For a moment there was an unreadable expression on the auburn-haired girl's face.

"Ah, I see. Well, I don't think you'd have anything to worry about if you play." She assured her.

"Why's that?"

"Ahh…forget it!" They heard Arisa say. "Hey, so do we have a plan yet?"

"No, not yet." Nanoha said.

"What, seriously? Are we just going to stand around all day? Okay. How about skating?"

"Oh! Skating's fun!" Hayate enthusiastically agreed.

"We can't, remember?" Suzuka reminded them. "Nanoha doesn't know how to skate."

"Oh yeah…"

"Sorry…" Nanoha said apologetically.

"You can't skate?" Fate asked.

"Ah, yeah…I never really had the time to learn."

"I see…"

"Can you skate, Fate?"

"Just a little…My dad taught me when I was younger."

"Hey, you know, we could use this time to teach you guys how to skate," Hayate offered.

"No!" Nanoha yelped, bringing everything to look at her in surprise. The girl fidgeted slightly on the spot. "I-I mean, it's okay. Really. If you guys want to go we can. I'll just sit on the side until you're done."

"Whaaa? But that's no good…"

"How about sledding?"

There was a pause when everyone realized that it was Fate who spoke up this time. Seeing everyone intently eyeing her prompted the girl to add,

"It was only a suggestion. But we don't have to if you guys don't want to."

"No! That's a wonderful suggestion!" Suzuka clapped her hands together. "Sledding...Hey, we haven't gone since we were kids, right Arisa?"

"I guess…" The girl mumbled.

"Oh! I have a couple of sleds at my place! We could totally use those!" Hayate added. She was really getting fired up over this idea. "But where should we go?"

"There's that hill by the school." Nanoha pointed out.

"You mean the small one by the elementary school?" Nanoha nodded. "Yeah, we could go there! Wow, I'm actually getting pumped for this. I haven't gone since I was a kid either. C'mon, c'mon, let's go already!"

As the group made their way through the crowd towards an exit, Nanoha slowed down to hang back with Fate.

"Hey, that was a good suggestion." She said.

Fate chuckled, a little embarrassed. "Yeah? You really think so?"

"I know so," she giggled. "Look at them. I've never seen them look so excited."

Suzuka and Hayate definitely fit that description to a tee, but Fate had doubts about Arisa. If anything, the girl was looking a bit glum. She wondered if this was due to her presence, but even if that were the case it didn't explain why the other girl hated her so much. Was it always going to be this way when they all hanged out together, she wondered.

* * *

After retrieving the sleds from Hayate's place the group eventually made their way to the hill. It wasn't very big, and the compact snow showed evidence of the elementary kids who went sledding earlier during their recess break. To their delight, the area was now empty and free for use.

"So…how should we split this up?" Suzuka asked. They only had two sleds and both were two-seaters.

"Well, I don't mind sitting out first." Fate offered.

"You sure?" Hayate asked.

"Yeah, I'll go next."

"Ok, sounds good! So, who wants to ride with me?"

Dead silence.

"Guys…" The brunette groaned, and they all laughed. She decided to forgive them when Nanoha offered herself as a sacrifice.

The girls took turns going down the hill. After several times, however, it was painfully clear that the two blondes were avoiding one another. Now Hayate normally didn't interfere with her friends' lives, well, okay, maybe she _sometimes_ did, but she thought the entire thing was becoming a bit silly. Not to mention, awkward. With that thought she began scheming away and after sledding down the hill a few more times, she finally had a plan.

When everyone reached the top of the hill again she stopped them.

"Hey, all this sledding is a lot of fun, but how do you guys feel about having a race?"

Arisa eyed her suspiciously. "We're not betting on anything here are we?"

"Nope! No bets."

"Mm…Well, as long as we're not betting on anything then I guess it's okay." The green-eyed girl said slowly. "What did you have in mind?"

"It's simple really. We just race each other in pairs. The first pair to the bottom of the hill wins." Arisa was starting to think that it didn't sound so bad until the brunette opened her mouth again. "Okay! First round is the blondes against everyone else!"

"What?"

"Nanoha, you're with me." Hayate said as she pulled her over.

"Suzuka-" Arisa turned to the purple-haired girl in hopes that she would save her from the situation, but her hopes were quickly shot down.

"Why not? It sounds like a good idea to me. Since I'll be sitting off to start, I can be the referee."

"Yeah, good idea!" Hayate agreed.

Arisa's eye-brow twitched dangerously. Just the thought of – she suddenly whipped her head towards Fate and glared. At the insistence of everyone else, Fate reluctantly got behind Arisa and sat down. When she hesitantly was about to place her hands on the girl's shoulders, Arisa growled,

"Don't touch me."

Fate blinked. "But I'll fall off…"

"Well now, that's your problem isn't it?"

The comment prompted a determined glint in Fate's red eyes. The moment Suzuka called the race and they started moving, Fate clamped her hands down hard on Arisa's shoulders.

"HEY! I said no touching!"

"I can't help it!"

"I said-"

"Hey-Watch-where you're shoving!"

The two teens began to wrestle, causing their sled swurve. When Arisa finally managed to swat the girl's hands off of her it caused her partner to lose balance. Fate yelped and instinctively grabbed a hold of Arisa's jacket as she fell back. They both immediately tumbled off into the snow as their sled was sent skidding off to the side.

"WIPE OUUUT!" Hayate yelled. The brunette's laughter could be heard as her and Nanoha slid to an easy victory.

When Fate and Arisa regained their senses, the first thing they saw was Hayate doing a victory dance at the bottom. Arisa scowled and muttered a quick curse under her breath. Her angry gaze whirled on Fate.

"This is all your fault!"

"What? How is it my fault?"

"If you had kept your hands to yourself like I told you to, then this wouldn't have happened."

Fate felt her patience begin to slip, but she bit her tongue. With a small sigh, she said, "Look, if you don't want me touching you, then why don't you let me sit at the front?"

"Because I'm obviously the better driver." Arisa huffed. Fate rolled her eyes at that.

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but a team race means we need to work as a team. Otherwise, you're going to see an awful lot of _that_," she pointed to Hayate. Arisa wrinkled her nose at the spectacle. She was clearly debating which she hated more.

"…Fine." She relented. "But I'm driving."

"Fine."

The two teams walked back up the hill and got back into their starting positions.

"Ready to get your butts kicked again?" Hayate taunted. This time she was surprised to see twin daggers shooting back at her.

"Don't bet on it." Arisa shot back.

"Okay, everyone ready?" Suzuka asked. Both teams nodded. "Ready…set…GO!"

Both teams got off to a good start. For the first part they were neck and neck. However when they crossed the halfway point Hayate's team started to pull ahead.

"Shit!" Arisa muttered under her breath.

"Go faster!" Fate gasped.

"I'm already going as fast as I can!" The green-eye girl snapped. "Wait, I've got an idea. Better on hang tight because if you fall this time it ain't gonna be my fault!"

Fate tightened her hold as the girl heaved her weight sharply to the left. Taking this as a signal, Fate did the same. Their sled shot forwards until they were side-by-side with Hayate and Nanoha. The brunette barely realized what was going on when Arisa shouted,

"Hey, Hayate! TAKE THIS!"

With a final shove, Arisa and Fate's sled slammed into Hayate and Nanoha's. The two girls yelped at the surprise attack.

"Woah! What are you crazy?" Hayate yelled.

Nanoha nearly lost her grip on Hayate's shoulders when Fate grabbed her at the last second.

"Hey, Testarossa! No helping the enemy!" Arisa shouted.

"Sorry!" She let go but by then Nanoha had regained her hold. The auburn-haired girl shot her a small, thankful nod.

Meanwhile at the front, Arisa and Hayate's limbs were tangled as they tried to kick one another off their sled.

"Back off!"

"Ouch! No, you!"

"No-Oof! You first! I insist!"

As they reached the bottom of the hill, the girls realized that no one had been paying attention to where they were going. Somehow they had gone off course and were sliding straight towards a snow bank. A chorus of yells rang throughout the area just before their sleds hit a bump and they were all sent flying. Seeing the entire thing, Suzuka hurriedly ran down the hill to see if her friends were okay. When she got there, she found them scattered along the blanket of snow.

"Is everyone okay?"

There were several moans that answered. Hayate was the first to sit up.

"So…who won?" She asked, looking dazed and out of breath.

Suzuka giggled as she helped extract Arisa from the snow bank first. "I think we should call it a tie."

"Awww…"

"That is, unless you guys want to go for another round?"

There was another round of moans. Cold and wet, the group decided to call it a day and head back to Hayate's place to warm up.

* * *

While the group stood at the front door, Hayate was rummaging for her keys when someone opened the door for them. Fate was startled to see that it was Shamal, the school nurse.

"Welcome home." The woman greeted Hayate, to which the girl happily nodded back.

"I'm back!"

Shamal greeted the rest of the girls in turn, who also looked happy to see her. Fate quietly watched, unsure of what to do. She then saw Shamal fix her warm gaze on her. "It's good to see you too, Fate."

"Umm…Yeah," she replied softly.

"Oh, Fate, didn't you know?" Hayate spoke up. "Shamal is my guardian."

"Ah, really?"

"Yup!" The brunette said proudly. "I have other family too, but they're away on a business trip at the moment. When they come back, I'll be sure to introduce you."

"Okay…" Fate noted how the girl said 'guardian' and not 'parent' but she decided to leave it be.

Shamal gestured for them to enter.

"Please, come in."

Everyone hurried into the house and immediately sighed in content at the warmth.

"Ahhh…that feels good." Hayate said as she moved to remove her coat. She then made her way over to a nearby closet and hung up her jacket. "Here, give me your jacket Fate."

"Thanks."

After everyone put away their coats and removed their shoes, they walked into the living room area. As they moved through the place, Fate couldn't help but be amazed at how big it seemed to be. Her house seemed so small in comparison. She also noted how expensive everything looked. The leather furniture still looked relatively new, and there were various paintings and glass ornaments decorating the rooms. If she broke anything how long would it take for her to pay it back?

In the living room, there were several couches along the wall. In the center was a large plasma screen TV. Fate's gaze landed on a Wii sitting beneath it. She tilted her head in curiosity before following the other girls into the kitchen.

"Did you girls have anything to eat yet?" Shamal asked.

"Uhuh." Hayate shook her head. "We were too busy having fun."

"Oh?"

"We went sledding." Nanoha said.

The smile on Shamal's face grew a tad at the mention. "I see…and how was it?"

"It was a lot of fun." Suzuka said. "We had a race and everything. I was the referee."

"A race, hm?"

"Yeah, and me and Nanoha won the first time." Hayate grinned at Arisa. "The second time was a tie."

"You only got lucky." Arisa muttered.

"Well, it sounds like you all enjoyed yourselves, and that's the important thing right?" Shamal said. "We haven't used those sleds for so long, so I'm glad that you were able to get some use out of them. Whose idea was it?"

"It was Fate's." Hayate said. Shamal nodded at that and Fate fought to keep a blush from rising to her cheeks at the compliment.

"Well, I haven't begun preparing dinner yet so why don't you decide amongst yourselves what you'd like?"

"Actually, would you mind if we ordered take-out?" Hayate asked.

"Not at all. But please let me know beforehand if that's what you decide to do."

"Okay! Also, can we have hot-chocolate too?"

"Would you like me to make it?" The woman asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yes, please!"

"Alright, it'll be a few moments though."

"That's okay. We'll be in the living room, okay?"

"Alright."

The group moved into the living and sat down. Arisa and Suzuka sat on one couch, while Hayate, Nanoha and Fate shared another. It didn't take long to decide on what they wanted to eat. By the time they had decided, Shamal was back with a tray of mugs for each of them.

Fate accepted her cup, immediately feeling the warmth spread to her tingling hands. She took a sip as she watched Shamal hand out the rest of the cups.

"So? What do you think?" Hayate asked her. "It's good isn't it? I really think Shamal's hot chocolate is the best!"

"It's good."

Hayate glanced over at the girl upon hearing the tone in her voice.

"Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong." Fate said. She brought the mug up to her lips again, her eyes never leaving the scene before her. "I was just thinking that Shamal is a really nice person."

Fate didn't know the other woman very well, but watching her interact with everyone somehow caused the teen's heart to tighten in pain. There was such warmth in the woman's expression, and everything she seemed to do was done with care. Fate thought of her own mother and involuntarily squeezed the mug in her hands a little tighter.

"Ah, yeah. She's amazing isn't she? I'm really lucky," Hayate said, uttering the latter in a much softer voice.

"Yeah…"

"So, have you girls decided on what you want to do?" Shamal asked.

"Yes! We decided to order pizza." Hayate declared. "AND, we agreed that loser pays."

"WHAT?" Everyone shouted.

"Hey, we didn't agree to that!" Arisa scowled. "Don't go putting words into our mouths, Hayate."

"Ah, ah, ah," the brunette waved a finger. "My house, my rules. Besides, we need to give Nanoha a chance to redeem her honour, don't you think?"

The auburn-haired girl's mouth dropped. "Hey!"

"Buuuuut…if you're really against it, then I guess there's no helping for it. Too bad, I was really hoping for a re-match."

Arisa saw Nanoha bite her bottom lip. She was probably trying to figure out what were the chances that she'd lose again.

"Oy, Nanoha, are you really gonna fall for this?"

"No! She's right!" Nanoha's blue eyes were blazing now. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I've got a score to settle." She turned to Hayate. "Okay! You're on!"

Hayate grinned. "Excellent. Fate, you're gonna play too right?"

"What? Well…"

"Don't worry. We won't make you pay if you lose."

"What?"

"Well, since you're working all the time, I'm guessing you probably need it for something, right?"

"Besides, didn't you say that you didn't play video games?" Suzuka added gently. "Since you're new, it wouldn't be fair to hold you to the same rules, don't you think?"

It took a moment for their words to sink in. But once they did, Fate felt like a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She suddenly felt glad for coming today.

"I see. Well, I don't mind but I can't say that I will be any good."

"Don't worry! We'll teach you everything you need to know." Hayate assured her once again.

Off to the side, Arisa was frowning at the scene.

"That's nice and all, but you haven't told us which game we're going to play," she reminded them.

"Arisa, I thought you'd never ask!" The brunette said as she made her way over to the Wii console. She pulled out a game disc for the group to see. On the front it clearly said "Super Mario Smash Brothers".

Arisa narrowed her eyes. "You can't be Kirby."

"Too bad. But if you want to play Kirby too I won't stop you."

"Hmph."

Fate had no idea what the pair was talking about. She watched her friends turn on the game console and was confused when a controller was placed in her hands.

"Okay, Fate, so the rules are really easy." Hayate said as she sat down beside the girl. "1 and 2 are your A and B."

"Okay. Wait…Then how come it says A here?"

"Just ignore it."

"…Okay."

"Basically when in doubt, button mash." Nanoha advised. "That's what I do."

Seeing the perplexed look on Fate's face, Arisa added, "In this game it really doesn't matter."

"Oh. I see."

"Right, unless you get the glowing rainbow ball." Hayate smiled.

"A rainbow-glowing ball…?"

"You'll see~"

Fate didn't like the sound of that. But she allowed herself to be guided through the character select and stage selection process. Going into the round, the stage was set with Kirby (Hayate), Samus (Nanoha), Pikachu (Fate) and Ike (Arisa). Fate had some difficulty adjusting initially when the battle begun, but soon she was as engrossed in the game as much as her friends.

"So, what do you think of the game so far, Fate?" Hayate asked ten minutes in.

"It's okay." Fate had somewhat figured out her character's special attacks at this point. With a quick movement a bolt of thunder came down from the sky and sent Samus flying off screen. Nanoha groaned.

"Oooh, good one!" Hayate remarked.

"Thanks."

"You know, for someone who doesn't play video games, you're pretty good at this. Are you sure you never played before?"

"Pretty sure." She paused when Ike came charging across the screen at her Pikachu. "When I was younger we couldn't afford them."

"I see. So what did you do instead?"

"We used something called an imagination."

"No kidding?"

A glowing-rainbow sphere suddenly dropped onto the stage and Hayate sat a little straighter. Fate was startled when everyone began to viciously fight over it. However, that all came to an abrupt halt when Kirby smashed it and took on the rainbow glow.

"Run!" Nanoha shouted.

All of the characters on screen bolted for the edges of the stage, leaving Fate to defend herself. The blonde felt shivers run down her spine when she heard Hayate cackle. On screen, Kirby walked right up to Fate's character. Her mind went blank when a giant cooking pot appeared and everyone in the near vicinity was violently sucked in.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEH?"

Fate's eyes grew as big as saucers. Arisa swore as her and Fate's characters were spat out in an instant K.O.

"NO!" Arisa yelled.

"Bye-Bye." Hayate merrily grinned.

"You floating marshmellow! You're gonna pay for that!"

Several more tortuous minutes passed. It was quickly becoming clear that Fate, Arisa and Nanoha were going to lose at the rate they were going; Hayate was up by at least five lives on all of them. Although Fate was not obligated to the terms of the bet she still felt the pressure. She definitely did not want to lose.

The red-eyed girl was distracted when she felt someone tap her shoulder. Nanoha was whispering to her.

"Hey, you guys wanna team up?"

"Huh? Can we do that?"

"Let's do it." Arisa growled. "I don't care who wins as long as it's not her."

During the battle, Hayate had taken the liberty of taking a break. Her character had been lying towards the edge of the screen while she watched the others duke it out. However, the brunette let out a gasp when all three of her opponents shot towards her at once.

"You're ganging up on me?"

She barely heard Arisa shout, "Get the slacker!" when the brawl broke out once again.

It had been a close match. In the battle's final minutes Arisa nearly had the brunette until she lucked out by grabbing a hammer. Fate had lost a bit earlier, but the one who came in last place again was Nanoha.

"I win!" Hayate yelled, earning a collective groan from the three girls. She promptly began speaking to Suzuka about the arrangements of the next match when Fate glanced over at the auburn-haired girl. She was clearly discouraged about the outcome and Fate felt sorry for her.

"So…that was a pretty close match, huh?" Fate said in an attempt to lighten the mood. She saw blue-eyes glance her way.

"Oh. Yeah…You guys did great. Especially you, Fate, since this was your first time and all."

Fate shook her head. "I was lucky, that's all. But, anyway," she continued, suddenly averting her eyes, "I was just thinking…if you want, I can pay for the pizza."

Nanoha fully turned to face her. The surprise was evident in her expression.

"I mean…you treated me last time, right? So I really don't mind…"

A smile broke across the auburn-haired girl's face. Fate stiffened when the girl giggled and suddenly wrapped her arms around her shoulders in a loose hug.

"Thanks, Fate! But it's okay. I got this one."

"You sure? Cause I really don't mind."

"I'm sure. I appreciate the thought though. Besides, I only treated you to a drink. That doesn't mean you should have to treat everyone to pizza."

"Oh. I-I guess…" Fate blushed.

Given that the other girl had lost a number of times before, Fate was worried that it might be becoming an expense for her to always be treating the entire group. But if Nanoha said she was okay, then Fate decided that she wasn't going to push it. Besides, the blue-eyed girl did seem genuinely happier now.

Neither of the two noticed that Arisa had been watching their exchange. Signing loudly, Arisa suddenly stood up and declared,

"I'm gonna get a drink." She made eye contact with Fate and paused for a moment. "Did you want something?"

Fate returned the look with one of her own.

"…Yeah. Actually, I'll go with you. We'll be right back." She said to the others. Nanoha was about to follow after them when she saw Hayate and Suzuka shake their head. Reluctantly, Nanoha sat back down and waited.

The pair walked into the kitchen. Fate eyed the other blonde as she walked to one of the upper shelves and pulled out two glasses.

"Here." She said, offering Fate a glass.

"Thanks."

Arisa went to fill her glass with water. They were both standing side by side now, but neither of the girls looked willing to break the silence first. Fate was beginning to think that she had misinterpreted Arisa's intention to talk, but to her surprise, even after retrieving their drinks, Arisa hadn't moved from her spot. She would occasionally take a sip of her water but otherwise she purposely avoided eye contact with her. What was she waiting for?

"So…I guess we lost." Fate broke the silence first and got a snort in response.

"She was just lucky, that's all."

"You seem to say that a lot."

Arisa didn't say anything and instead decided to take another sip of her water. Seeing that they were alone, Fate decided to work up her courage and ask what was really on her mind.

"Hey, Arisa? Can I ask you something?"

"Depends."

She took a breath. "You know, I couldn't help but notice that you seemed to be angry with me. Did I do something to offend you?" She saw the girl pause. "I mean, if it's about the coffee incident-"

"No."

She had said the word with such a definitive tone that Fate was taken aback.

"Then…is it because of the thing that happened with Nanoha's wrist? Because, it really was an accident."

Arisa sighed, suddenly looking tired.

"No, that's not it either."

Now Fate was stumped.

"Then…"

"You haven't done anything wrong. Not_ yet_ at least."

Fate couldn't help but notice the bitterness in her tone. She wanted to ask her what she meant by that, but it was the first time that she was able to have a civil conversation with the other girl. Afraid of triggering her temper, she decided to wait for her to continue.

"Back when we were kids, one of our _friends_…did something. And because of it, Nanaha was hurt."

_Nanoha was hurt?_

"What happened?" she couldn't help but ask.

"That's none of your business. Listen, Testarossa, just so we're clear, you don't seem like a bad person and I may have been… over-reacting a little bit, but I can promise you one thing…if you _ever _hurt Nanoha, I definitely won't forgive you."

Fate met those sharp green-eyes and knew she meant business. But somehow, she didn't feel nervous at all.

The doorbell rang and they heard a scurrying of feet.

"Pizza's here!" They heard Hayate shout.

Arisa turned and headed towards the doorway when Fate stopped her.

"Arisa."

"Hm?"

"That won't ever happen. Nanoha is my friend, so…I'll protect her."

Her choice of words seemed to surprise both girls.

"That person said something similar you know?"

"I'm different."

"…Heh. That remains to be seen."

"Also-"

"Hm?"

"Even if you don't trust me now, I really hope that we can become friends someday. I really had a lot of fun hanging out with you and everyone else today."

"Even though we lost?"

"Of course."

Despite herself, the girl let a small smile slip. "If you help me beat Hayate next time then I might consider it. But even then, I wouldn't push your luck. Anyway, pizza's here. We better hurry or there'll be none left."

"What? Really?" she said, following after the other girl.

After eating, the girls watched a movie together. When they were done fawning over the stars and debating over who they liked best, they all got ready for bed. At Hayate's insistence they camped out in the living room in sleeping-bags. And like everyone else, Fate ended up borrowing one from Hayate.

Soon, everyone but Fate was fast asleep. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't stop thinking about her conversation with Arisa. A part of her was relieved that the girl hadn't been angry because of her per se, but it was clear that whatever had happened in the past still weighed heavily on her mind. She didn't understand it. If Nanoha was the one who was hurt, then why was Arisa the one who was angry?

_What happened…? _

Fate heard rustling beside her. When she turned her head she was met by a pair of blue-eyes staring back at her.

"Can't sleep?" Nanoha whispered in order to avoid waking the others.

"Mm…" Fate nodded. "I was just thinking…"

"About?"

Fate held her attentive gaze. She wanted to ask her, but Arisa's words saying that it was none of her business rang loudly in her mind. She suddenly felt cold. To the others, she was technically a newcomer still. And if Nanoha had bad memories about the incident, then talking about it might make her uncomfortable. The last thing she wanted to do was give the other girl a reason to push her away.

"Fate…?"

Fate snapped out of it when she felt Nanoha's hand press over hers.

"It's nothing," she said, offering a small smile to reassure the other girl. "I was just thinking about how much fun I had today."

Nanoha nodded. "I'm glad. I was happy that you were able to make it."

"Yeah..."

"We should do this again sometime."

"Mm…" Fate couldn't help the yawn that escaped her lips. Nanoha smiled at this.

"Good-night Fate."

"Good-night…Nanoha."

* * *

**Omake: Arisa's Dilemma**

Arisa was faced with a dilemma. Out of boredom she had walked into a pet store that day. And in one of the glass cases were two bunnies. Both of them had golden fur and red eyes. She was instantly reminded of Fate and that Fate had a twin. She wondered: if she met them like this, would she be able to tell them apart?

She reached her hand inside the case and one of the two bunnies hopped up and sniffed it.

_**CHOMP**_

"FATE! You're the Fate bunny!"


	6. Why Aren't We Happy Too? Part 1

**A/N: **A slight change has been made with respect to Fate and Alicia's father in chapter 1. That is all.

**Disclaimer:** I do **not** own MLGN in any way.

* * *

It was late in the morning when Fate finally got up. After washing up and getting dressed, she quietly made her way to a room at the end of the upstairs hallway. The door was ajar. She peeked inside and was relieved to find it empty. Taking this opportunity, Fate stepped inside and approached the head of the bed. With a small movement she propped up a pillow and slipped a small envelope underneath it before lowering it again. With that done, she left the room.

Fate gathered her things and was about to head out the door when she heard a voice and was startled.

"Going out?"

Fate turned around to find her sister standing behind her.

"Alicia? You're still here?"

"Well, that's not very nice. Don't I get a 'hello' or a 'good morning' at least?"

"Heh, sorry…But it seems kind of late for that now, don't you think?"

"I guess…"

"Anyway, what are you still doing here? You aren't going to the library today?"

"Yeah, well, that was the plan…but plans change I guess." She shrugged.

"Oh? Is everything okay?"

Alicia stared at Fate with an indecipherable expression on her face. After a moment she finally said,

"You know what? It can wait. You were about to head out right?"

"Yeah, but…if there's something bothering you…"

"It's okay." She waved dismissively. "So, where were you headed? Work?"

Fate smiled and shook her head. If she had been paying attention she would have noticed the dark look that crept into her sister's eyes.

"Let me guess. You're going to go see Nanoha again, right?"

"Well, yeah, sort of." Fate said, looking a little embarrassed. Was she really that predictable? "But it's not just going to be Nanoha today. Arisa, Hayate, and Suzuka are going to be there too. You see, we were thinking of going to see a movie together."

"Ah, I see…It seems like you've been spending an awful of time with them lately."

Fate furrowed her brow at that.

"Is there something wrong with that?"

Alicia crossed her arms over her chest. She seemed to be debating something.

"You said her last name was Takamachi, right?"

"Yeah, that's right. Why?"

"And your other friends, you were talking about Arisa Bannings, Suzuka Tsukimura, and Hayate Yagami, right?"

"Yeah. Alicia, what is this about?"

"Fate, I hate to ask you this but…what exactly do you know about your friends?"

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" Alicia said nothing. She seemed to be waiting for her answer. "Well, they seem like nice people. And I enjoy hanging out with them. Why? Is there something that I should know about them?"

Alicia averted her gaze for a moment before making eye contact with Fate again.

"Fate, do you remember when you first told me that her name was Takamachi? I thought it sounded familiar, so I went and looked it up. And you know what? It seemed that my hunch was correct. For instance, did you know that the Takamachi family owns a multi-million dollar business in the food industry? The Bannings family are pretty much the same, and the Tsukimura family is a family of rich engineers. I admit that couldn't find much on the Yagami family, but I wouldn't be surprised if they had similar connections as well. So…" she asked, "Do you finally get it now?"

Fate stared back at her with a blank look on her face.

"Wait… You actually researched my friends?"

"That's not the point, Fate. The point is…" she sighed, "Are you really sure they're your friends?"

"Why wouldn't they be? You think just because they're rich they wouldn't want to be friends with me?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying. I mean, just think about it. Rich people like them can pretty well do anything they want. So why would they suddenly take an interest in people like us? How do you know they're not playing with you or setting you up for something?"

"Setting me up?" Fate's voice was low. "Like for what?"

"I don't know. It could be anything. But just because they're nice to you now it doesn't mean it'll stay that way. For all you know, they could be waiting until they have your trust before they start showing their true colours. Look Fate, you're a good person but sometimes I worry about you. Sometimes it seems like you'd do almost anything for someone you care about, even if that person doesn't deserve it."

"That's not true."

"It's not? Then what were you doing just now?"

Fate tensed.

"For everything you've done for her, have you ever heard her say thank you? Hell, when was the last time she even looked at you?"

"Stop it, Alicia. Don't bring mom into this." Her words were like a slap in the face but Fate stood her ground. She took a steadying breath and then added, "Besides, they're not like her. They're different."

"Do you honestly believe that? You should see yourself. Before you met them, you were always picking up extra shifts at work. You were always busy. You didn't have time for anything, not even family! But now? You're practically bending over backwards just to see them."

"It's not like that."

"If they really cared about you-"

"I'm telling you, they're not like that! They aren't forcing me to anything."

"And what if you're wrong?"

"Alicia…Have you ever thought that, maybe, you might be over-reacting a bit?"

Her sister looked taken aback. For a moment, Fate thought she had calmed down until she opened her mouth again.

"Well, I guess that depends... Have you ever thought that 'maybe' you're just turning a blind eye because you're so desperate for friends?"

The comment stabbed Fate in the heart. For some reason, she immediately thought of Nanoha.

Fate shook her head. "Nanoha is my friend. She would never do anything to hurt me on purpose. I'm sure of it." She finally said. Alicia clenched her jaw at the name.

"But how do you know? How do you know she's not just putting up some kind of front?"

"You've never even met her, so don't talk about her like that!"

"I know you don't like hearing this Fate, but I just don't want to see you get hurt!"

"Is that really it? You always say that, but from where I'm standing it sounds like you're just jealous!"

Breathing heavily, their furious gazes were in deadlock. Fate was the first to look away. Before Alicia could say another word she was gone. She heard Alicia call after her but she kept on running. She didn't want to listen to this anymore. So what if her friends were rich? What difference did it make? She shoved the thoughts aside. There was no point on dwelling on it, she told herself. She was going to meet up with everyone and everything was going to be just as it was before.

* * *

Fate was panting and slightly out of breath by the time she finally arrived at the meeting place. She didn't need a watch to know that she was late. All of her friends were already there. She scanned the scene before her. To her surprise, they were all standing around a parked car and were chatting with a blonde-haired person that she had never seen before.

_Who is that?_ She wondered. That was when her friends noticed her.

"Fate! Over here!" Hayate shouted and waved her over.

"Hey. Sorry I'm late."

"Psh, no worries. It happens to the best of us. So what happened? Did you sleep in or something?"

_I wish…_

"No, it's nothing like that. Something came up at home so I had to deal with that first."

"Ah…"

Fate proceeded to exchange small talk with the rest of the girls. As she did so, she could feel the curious gaze of the blonde boy on her. She wasn't sure what to make of him, but from a first glance she had almost mistaken him for a girl. He was tall and skinny, and the clothes he wore were of work-casual style. Similar to Arisa, he had green eyes and long blonde hair which was tied back into a low ponytail.

"Oh, by the way, Fate. You haven't met Yuuno yet, have you?" Nanoha asked. "Fate, this is Yuuno. Yuuno, Fate. Fate goes to school with us."

"I see. Yuuno Scrya," He said as he stepped forward and extended his hand. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Fate." He smiled.

"Same here." Fate said as she hesitantly shook his hand.

As if reading her mind, Nanoha added, "Yuuno is a childhood friend. We've all known each other since we were kids."

"Oh, I see. So you've known each for awhile then."

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." Yuuno laughed. "But to tell you the truth, it feels like time really flew by…" For a moment his gaze was directed at the auburn-haired girl standing beside him in particular. "Anyway, since everyone's here now, should we get going? You guys said that the movie started at 2:00 right?"

"Yeah, that's right." Hayate said, checking her phone. It was twenty to 2:00 now.

"Oh, are you coming too?" Fate couldn't help but ask.

"Sort of, but not really."

"Right before you showed up, Yuuno offered to give us a ride." Suzuka explained.

"Oh…" It suddenly made sense. Then that meant Yuuno was probably the owner of this fancy looking sports car as well. She could almost hear Alicia now:

_"Great. Another rich kid…"_

"It's really nice of you to give us a ride." She said. She smiled, hoping it would mask some of the insecurity she felt.

"Please, don't worry about it." He waved. "I just happened to be in the area so I thought it was the least I could do. Anyway, shall we go now?"

"Yeah, let's go! We've got fifteen minutes to get there people!" Hayate shouted as she jumped into the back seat.

Fate was right behind her when she realized something.

"Hey, guys…? Aren't we short one seat?"

"Oh, that's okay. If you all squeeze in, in the back it should be fine." Yuuno said.

"But…"

"It's a short ride. I doubt anyone would notice." He added.

Fate still was a bit hesitant, but deciding that she didn't want to be a spoil sport she got in.

* * *

The ride to the movie theatre was a silent one. Everyone seemed to be enjoying the peaceful ambience except Fate. Her head was abuzz with thoughts.

_Everyone's the same…_

Yuuno, Arisa, Suzuka, Hayate and Nanoha…But where did that leave her? She didn't come from a wealthy family. She didn't grow up with everyone else. But Yuuno did. Fate was surprised by the sudden pang of jealously she felt. She had only met the boy and while the more rational side of her knew that it wasn't his fault, but she couldn't help but feel resentful. Up until now, she didn't realize that there was such a large gap between her and her friends. It made her feel…insignificant.

_"Why would they suddenly take an interest in people like us? Have you ever thought that 'maybe' you're just turning a blind eye because you're so desperate for friends?"_

Fate felt horrible. Everyone has been nothing but kind to her and yet she was having these awful thoughts.

"So, Fate…" she heard Yuuno say.

"Yes?"

"You go to school with Nanoha and everyone else right? I was just curious, but how did you guys meet?"

"Oh. Well…I guess you could say that we sort of ran into each other?" She saw Hayate snicker out of the corner of her eye. "I met Nanoha first and then I met everyone else after that."

"Oh, okay…Well, that's cool."

"Yeah…I'm guessing you go to a different school?"

"Yeah. I go to TSAB."

"Umm…"

"It's a private academy for boys." Arisa said.

"Oh. I see…"

"It's nothing special." He assured her. "Anyway, what does your family do, Fate?"

"Do? What do you mean?"

"Like your parents. What kind of careers do they have?"

Fate was caught off guard by the question. She quickly glanced at the people around her. Although everyone appeared to be disinterested, she got the distinct feeling that they were all intently listening for her answer.

"Well…My mom used to work as a scientist, but I think she's working as a secretary now."

"Yeah? For which company?" When Fate didn't answer, Yuuno changed the topic. "What about your dad?"

"I don't know." She said casually. "My parents got divorced a long time ago so…"

There was a pause.

"I'm sorry to hear that." He said. "That must be kind of tough."

"Not really. Like I said, it was a long time ago."

No one said anything after that. They arrived at the movie theatre shortly after. Like everyone else with nothing to do on the weekend, the place was packed with people.

"Wow…it's sure looks crowded today, doesn't it?" Suzuka commented.

"It shouldn't be a problem. I reserved the tickets in advance, remember?" Arisa reminded her.

"Oh yeah, I completely forgot. Thanks Arisa!"

The said blonde turned a bit red at the comment.

"Don't be silly. It's just common sense, that's all."

"In any case, it's a good thing we got here when we did. We made good time. We're actually here a bit early." Hayate said. She then turned to Yuuno. "Thanks for giving us a ride Yuuno!"

"Yes, it was a big help." Suzuka agreed. Nanoha nodded beside her and Yuuno seemed to light up at this.

"Like I said, it was no trouble at all." He beamed.

"So what are you going to do now?" Hayate asked again.

"Hmm…I'm not really sure. I don't really have anything planned, so…"

"In that case, why don't you come watch a movie with us?"

"What? Is that really okay? But isn't this a girl's day out kind of thing…?"

"Psh, like you have anything to worry about. I don't think anyone would notice the difference."

"Oh haha… Forget it, I'm not getting it cut. I like it long."

"But it makes you look girly!"

"It does not! I'll have you know that it's the latest trend in men's fashion!"

"Then why don't you have a girlfriend yet?"

"That's because-!" He caught the mischievous gleam in her blue eyes and decided not to step into that land mine. "Look, never mind. Anyway, yeah, if it's okay with you guys, I'd love to join you."

"I don't really mind but, we'd need to buy another ticket then. I only reserved for five." Arisa pointed out.

"You'd better hurry then," Nanoha advised as she eyed the line up. "It looks like it's getting crowded pretty fast and the movie's going to start soon."

"You know, I got a better idea." Hayate declared. "Why don't we line up and Yuuno can go buy the refreshments? That way we can get two things done at once."

"Sounds good to me." Arisa shrugged. "Better make that a large popcorn for me."

"Wait, wha-"

"Since I'll probably be sharing with Arisa, I'd only like a small ice tea, please." Suzuka said.

"I want a large popcorn too!" Hayate added. "Nanoha, what do you want?"

"Oh, well…"

"Come on! Yuuno's treating!" she encouraged.

The auburn-haired girl looked thoughtful. "Sorry, but I'm just not really hungry or thirsty at the moment, so I think I'll pass."

"Are you sure?" Yuuno asked.

"Yeah, I'm good. Fate?"

"Sorry, same here."

"WELL! Since that's settled, shall we go?" Hayate was about to walk away when Yuuno spoke up again.

"Hold on. Where do you think you're going? I don't mind treating, but you guys can't really expect me to carry all of that back by myself, do you?"

"We can't?" Hayate blinked back with innocent blue eyes.

"Hayate..." Yuuno looked like he wanted to smack her. "Well, that's fine. Fate, you'll help me right?"

"Huh?"

"Well, there's really no point in having five people stand in line. And I could really use the help."

The thought of being left alone with the boy didn't exactly thrill her but Fate couldn't find a reason to decline.

"Okay, sure. I don't mind." She finally agreed.

"Great! Let's go then! We'll catch up with you guys later!"

Before anyone could say anything he quickly led Fate away. When they got to the concession line they found that it was just as long if not longer than the ticket line. Suppressing a groan they both got in line and waited for their turn. Needless to say, several long, awkward minutes passed in silence. A few times Fate caught the boy glancing at her. It gave her impression that he wanted to say something but for whatever reason he wasn't.

"Is there something on my face?" He seemed startled when she suddenly spoke up.

"Oh, well…" Yuuno started, looking a bit uncomfortable. "No, it's just…about earlier…I really didn't know about your parents. So I wanted to apologize to you for bringing it up."

Fate blinked back in surprise. He really did sound sincere.

"It's nothing. Please, don't worry about it."

"It's just, most people I meet are, well…from the same background as me, so, I shouldn't have, but I just sort of assumed…"

"It's okay."

It really wasn't. After her conversation with Alicia this was exactly the sort of topic that she had wanted to avoid. Despite that though, she had to admit that a part of her was burning with curiosity. Instead of seeing this as an unpleasant meeting, could she maybe use this as an opportunity to learn a little more about her friends?

"Hey, Yuuno…Would you mind if I asked you a question?"

"Hm? Oh, sure! What's up?"

"I was wondering…When you said that you usually meet people who are, well, like you, that includes Nanoha too, right?"

"Mm…yeah."

_"Do you remember when you first told me that her name was Takamachi? I thought it sounded familiar, so I went and looked it up. Did you know that the Takamachi family owns a multi-million dollar business in the food industry?"_

"So…Does her family own a restaurant or something?"

"Kind of. But I guess it would be more accurate to say that they run a number of restaurants. For example, do you know the Midori-ya? It's a small café in town. That's just one of the many places that the Takamachi family runs."

_The Midori-ya? Nanoha's family owns it? …Why didn't she tell me?_

She hated to admit it, but Alicia was right. It really bothered her. She knew she was stupid and maybe clueless sometimes but this was - if she didn't know something as simple as that, then what else didn't she know?

"You really didn't know?" she heard Yuuno ask gently.

She couldn't stand it.

"Sorry…You know, I just remembered but there was something important that I had to do. So I don't think I'll be able to watch the movie with you guys after all."

"What? Really…?" There was a concerned look on his face.

"Yeah, sorry…I should get going now, but do you think you could tell the others for me?"

"Well, I can, but…At the very least, would you like me to give you a lift? It'd really be no trouble at all."

"No. That's okay. You'll miss the movie if you do."

"Still…"

"I'll be fine. Anyway, it was nice meeting you again, Yuuno. Maybe we can talk again sometime."

"Yeah, we definitely should!"

"Well…okay, then. See you."

After saying her goodbye, Fate left. She felt guilty for bailing on her friends at the last minute, but she just didn't want to be near anyone right now. She didn't want anyone to see her cry.

* * *

Across town, Alicia Testarossa was on her way to the library. Like Fate, she too was lost in her thoughts.

"_-I just don't want to see you get hurt!"_

"_Is that really it? You always say that, but from where I'm standing it sounds like you're just jealous!"_

She cringed at the memory. She couldn't remember the last time she saw Fate so angry. A part of her was hurt and angry at Fate for saying such things. Even though they were identical twins, Alicia had always taken the role of being the older sister very seriously. Why couldn't Fate understand that she was only looking out for her?

Alicia was at the library entrance now. She walked up the set of steps and went inside the building. Inside, she was interrupted from her thoughts when she saw how busy it was. Would she be able to find a seat? It was disappointing but she supposed it was to be expected. She usually arrived in the early morning when the library first opens but today, that was impossible given when Fate usually woke up. The look of Fate's shocked face flashed through her mind. Alicia averted her eyes just in time to quickly side-step away from a little girl running past her.

"Mommy!"

Alicia watched the girl run up to a woman she assumed was her mother and gave her a big hug around her knees. The woman immediately chided her for running in the library, but despite that they both had smiles on their faces. For the briefest moment, Alicia saw her own family superimposed in their places and something tugged in her heart.

Alicia wandered around and eventually found an empty space in the far corner of the library. She sat down and immediately went to take out her notes but stopped. After everything that happened today was she really going to pretend it never happened?

_Why? When did everything change?_

When they were younger, she and Fate were inseparable. They did everything together. So why now, even when they were an arm's reach away, they did feel so far apart? It seemed like a silly question; like with most things, Alicia already had the answer to that one.

_It all started with the divorce. Me and Fate were just entering middle school at the time._ _Our mom became distant…and after that, Fate and I grew apart too. _

_Ever since we were little, our mom always emphasized the importance of a good education. Whenever we did well on our exams, she would always smile and give us a treat. That's it, isn't it? It's so stupid, but I thought that if I did better at school then she would look at me like she used to. _

_But she didn't. _

_So I studied harder. I studied so much but where did that get me?_

Sure, people praised her for her grades and always made comments about how they wished their child would learn from her but was it really worth it? Every day, she was sitting at an empty desk all by herself. In the back of her mind she had always known, but until now she didn't allow herself to dwell on it. By becoming so invested in her studies she ended up pushing everyone away, including Fate. Then Fate started working. Suddenly, neither of them had the time to hang out anymore and so she began to study even more. She knew: at some point it stopped being a means of earning her mother's affection and instead became a means of numbing the painful loneliness that had been slowly consuming her. But that was okay, wasn't it? Fate didn't have any real friends either. Even if she was miserable, she wouldn't be the only one, right?

She remembered when Fate first told her that she had made some new friends. Like the last few times, she assumed it wouldn't last. But this time it looked like she was wrong. Before she knew it, Fate was beginning to change into someone she didn't know. It frightened her. Fate was leaving her behind. It just wasn't fair. If she had so much free time to spend on a group of strangers, then why couldn't she spend some time with her too?

It clicked.

_Could it really be true? Am I just jealous, like Fate said?_

She suddenly hated being here in this place. It was suffocating. Alicia quickly packed her things and left.

* * *

Alicia was walking down the street when a movie advertisement on one of the shops windows caught her eye. She stared at the poster. Fate mentioned something about going to see a movie today, didn't she? Seeing that she didn't have anything else to do, she stepped inside the shop.

Alicia went to the DVD section and began to browse their selection. She didn't know why she was so surprised that she didn't recognize any of the titles. Was she really that out of touch with things?

"Can I help you with something, Miss?" A young man asked.

"Not really. I'm just looking."

"I see. Oh, that's a good one by the way! If you haven't seen it yet, I personally recommend it."

Alicia looked to one that he was pointing at.

"This one? What's it about?"

"Well, long story short, it's a story about two best friends and how they met. I won't spoil it too much for you, but they didn't start off that way. They had to overcome a lot of obstacles in order to become closer to each other. Oh, and I think there's a talking ferret in there too. So if you like cute things, that's a plus!"

"Is that so?" Alicia wasn't all that interested but she thought it was something that Fate would have liked. She was always watching that kind of thing back when they were kids. "Thanks for the suggestion. I'll have to think about it."

"Right! But if you ever need anything, just call!"

"Okay." She smiled. But the moment he left, the smile vanished.

Alicia wondered if Fate was having fun where she was right now. Now that she felt a little calmer, she wondered why it was so hard for her to be happy for her sister. Maybe she was jealous, but at the same time she had been genuinely concerned for her. She was just starting to realize that perhaps she could have expressed herself a bit better.

_I said some really horrible things to her. I need to make it up to her. But how?_

Apologizing was a no-brainer. But that alone didn't seem like enough. She wanted to do something more than that. Almost unconsciously her eyes were drawn to the movie the boy had pointed out. She picked it up and read the synopsis on the back. It really did sound like something Fate would have liked. Maybe that was the answer. She would apologize to her and then ask her if she would like to watch the movie with her. And then after that, maybe they could start to become close again.

After making her purchase, Alicia walked out of the store and began to walk home. But on the way she glimpsed a familiar face in the crowd. Her heart skipped a beat.

_It can't be…_

It was the same man from the photograph that Fate kept in her room.

"Dad…?"

Without thinking she broke out into a run. She weaved through the crowd as quickly as she could in worry that she might look sight of him. "Dad!" She called out. He was so close; he was only across the street from where she was. To her frustration she was stopped by a red light. She tried calling to him again. This time he turned around, but his gaze passed right over her. In that moment a beautiful, young woman stepped out of the crowd and happily embraced him. Alicia's breathe hitched. She suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe. She knew that her father might find someone else. But that didn't stop her heart clenching from at the sight.

When she couldn't watch anymore she turned on a heel and ran away as fast as her legs could carry her.

* * *

Several hours later, Fate felt calm enough to return home. But the moment she took that first step up the stairs to the front door and heard yelling, her entire body stiffened. For a split second she considered turning back, but where else would she go? With that thought in mind, Fate took a deep breath and turned the door knob tensely as she stepped inside. To her luck there was no one in sight. She quickly removed her shoes and hurried upstairs to her room. Only once the door was slammed shut behind her did she let out a breath of relief.

Fate then stepped into the room and was startled when she felt something sharp press against the bottom of her foot.

"What the-?"

She bent down and groped the floor until she found it. She then held it up to the light coming in through her room window and gasped to see that it was a shard of glass. Her gaze slowly turned towards her dresser as if drawn by a magnet. Where was the picture? Fate leapt to her feet and quickly realized that it had been knocked over. But that wasn't what shocked her. The glass had been smashed into pieces, and the original photograph was damaged. She could scarcely believe her eyes. First it was the argument with Alicia. Then it was dealing with the guilt of abandoning her friends, and now _this_? Something inside snapped. Without a second thought she stormed downstairs to the source of the yelling.

"It's ALL your fault!"

"That's not true, and you know it! He was the one who cheated on ME!"

"What THE hell?"

Her mother and sister froze at the shout. In the dim light Fate could barely make out Alicia's tear-stained face and the enraged one of her mother, but in that moment she didn't give a damn.

"The picture in my room!" she demanded. "Which one of you did it?"

"What?" Precia frowned in confusion.

"Who the hell cares?" Alicia sniffed.

"I do!"

"Well maybe you shouldn't!"

Fate narrowed her eyes at the other girl. "…It was you, wasn't it?"

"So what if it was?"

Fate's shocked expression gave way to hurt. She didn't know what she had been expecting but actually hearing the confession tore her in two.

"But why? Why would do such a thing?" Her question was interrupted by a furious Precia Testarossa.

"Alicia! Is this true? Did you really break your sister's picture?"

"Shut up!" The girl snapped back at the older woman. "Don't even try to pretend you're my mother! This is between me and Fate so butt out!"

If it was even possible, the woman's gaze darkened even more.

"How dare you talk to me like that? Who do you think paid the bills and raised you when your cheating father ran out on us?"

"Yeah, well you might as well have left too! You're never around! NEVER! It's always work this and work that! What happened to cutting back your hours so that you can spend more time at home, huh?"

Precia momentarily looked taken aback. "You know how important my job is, Alicia. If there's work to be done then I can't just abandon it."

"So it's okay to abandon your family instead?"

"Stop it, Alicia. Please…" Fate pleaded. "You know how hard mom works. It's not her fault."

Alicia's accusatory glare instantly turned on her. After a moment she said,

"It figures you'd take her side. You're just like her."

"Alicia…"

"You're always so busy working that you never have time for anything else! But then guess what? You suddenly get some new friends and everything changes! Even though we're family, you're always with them! Why? What makes them so special?"

This time Fate was speechless.

"Alicia, please try to calm down." Precia weakly requested.

"NO! You never, not ONCE, noticed how I've felt! I've been so lonely…it hurts! Goddammit! It hurts so much!"

The rest of her words were drowned out by sobs. When Precia reached out to the girl she jerked out of her reach. Fate stood frozen to the spot as her sister ran past her. The front door slammed shut behind them and an awkward silence followed.

Fate was at a loss. She desperately looked to her mother, who was standing there with a sad expression on her face. Slowly, the woman turned her back to her and began to walk towards the other end of the room. Fate wanted to call out to her, but for some reason her voice wouldn't work. She could do nothing but watch as her mother stepped into the kitchen and disappeared out of sight.

* * *

Everything happened so fast after that. The next thing Fate knew, she was running. The cold outside air stung with every breath she took, but she didn't care. It hurt. It hurt so much that it felt like her heart was going to burst any moment. By the time it felt like she couldn't run anymore, she found herself back in the park. But what little hope she had sank when she saw that the bench was empty. Despite that though, she walked up to it and sat down. Instantly the cold penetrated through her thin clothing and she shivered.

Fate took out her headphones and cranked up the music. She closed her eyes and listened intently for several minutes but to her frustration it wasn't enough to distract her this time.

_What am I going to do? _She wondered. _Alicia probably went to Chrono's, so I can't go there. _Fate could have sworn that she was cursed. The one place that she could always rely on was not available when she needed someone the most. She let out a shaky, resigned sigh. _I don't want to go home…_

The temperature continued to drop but Fate didn't budge. Somewhere along the way she had pulled out her cell phone. Even now when her hands were freezing she stubbornly held it out where she could see it; on the screen was a single, sent message:

_"I need someone to talk to. I'm at the park."_

_Will she come? _She wondered as she stared up at the dark sky. She wouldn't blame her if she didn't. She did, after all, bail on them at the last minute. For all she knew, everyone was probably disappointed in her now.

Fate heard approaching footsteps and turned to see who it was. She was shocked to see Nanoha standing there. The auburn-haired girl was panting and her face was red as if she had been running. Against everything else, she somehow seemed so bright.

Fate offered a weak smile, not noticing the tears already falling down her cheeks.

"Sorry…I didn't know who else to call."

Nanoha didn't say anything as she walked up to her and gently wrapped her arms around her. In that instant Fate felt all of her barriers break down.


	7. Why Aren't We Happy Too? Part 2

**Disclaimer:** I do **not** own MLGN in any way.

**A/N:** Yeah, I know, this is a long over-due update. I had written this chapter a while ago but when I went to edit it, I decided that I didn't like it. So I ended up re-writing the majority of it three times. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

Nanoha had noticed that Fate seemed more distant than usual lately. She had wanted to ask her about it but Fate tended to keep personal matters to herself so she was hesitant about bringing it up. But…maybe that had been a mistake, because the next thing she knew Fate had disappeared and she wasn't returning any of her texts.

Nanoha felt terrible.

She had been lying awake in bed, wondering how she could have done things differently when her phone on the bedside table rang. Against the bright backdrop of the screen she read the words:

_**I need someone to talk to. I'm at the park.**_

She made up her mind: If Fate wanted someone to talk to then she would listen to whatever she wanted to say. And afterwards, just maybe, they would be able to work things out. Things could go back to the way they were before.

She ran to the meeting spot with that thought in mind. But when she got there, when she felt Fate cling to her, crying her heart out, she didn't know what to think anymore. Words failed her. So she did the only thing she could think of.

"_It's getting a bit chilly out here, hey? Do you want to come over?"_

The astonished look of disbelief on the blonde's face was still vivid in her mind. She also remembered her surprise when the girl suddenly asked,

"_Nanoha…W-Would you mind if I held your hand?"_

It might have been the cold, but her face had looked a little red then. If that was the case, then it was no wonder that Fate's hand felt so cold when she clasped it in hers. It was okay though. The action seemed to calm Fate down and for the time being that was a good enough reason for her not to let go.

* * *

Fate didn't say much on the way there. Even now, when they were standing at the front gate to her home she was quiet. Her tired red-eyes were trained on the building before them.

"Well, this is it. This is where I live."

Nanoha carefully watched for her friend's reaction and felt the sick sensation in her stomach worsen when she saw the lack of surprise on the blonde's face. Almost involuntarily, her lips fell into a weak smile.

"Anyway, I guess there's no point in standing around. After you?"

After escorting them inside, Nanoha withdrew a key from her coat pocket and unlocked the front door. She quickly disarmed the alarm system and waited with baited breath. A minute elapsed, and when she saw no movement she finally allowed herself to relax. It looks like no one had realized that she had been missing.

"It looks like all of the lights are out. That usually means everyone's gone to sleep, including the staff." The last word made her stop. She took a breath and continued, "I wouldn't worry about it though. I mean, as long as we stay quiet I think we should be okay."

Nanoha looked to the other girl and noted the small frown on her face. Fate's gaze was tilted downwards and her brow was furrowed in thought.

"Fate…?" She carefully asked.

"Hm?"

"Sorry, but, are you okay? You've been kind of spacing out all evening."

"Ah. S-Sorry…It's not that I wasn't paying attention. I heard what you said. It's just, I was just thinking, that's all..."

She turned to fully face her. She hadn't heard Fate say so much since they left the park. Did that mean she was finally ready to talk about what had been bothering her earlier?

"About?" she asked, trying to sound calm.

"Huh? Oh…it's nothing, really."

"It doesn't sound like nothing. Do you want to talk about it? I mean, who knows, maybe I can help."

"I don't know…Maybe I'm just being silly," she sighed. Nanoha frowned.

"Silly? How so?"

"Well," Fate said hesitantly, "like I said, it's nothing really. I was just wondering about staying over tonight…"

"…Oh." she finally said, not knowing what else to say. "I-I see."

"Mm."

"So, um, what about it? Did you change your mind or something?"

"No, it's nothing like that. It's just…Is it really okay?"

"You mean… is it okay for you to stay over? Yeah, of course it is. Why wouldn't it be? I invited you, remember?"

"I know, but it's kind of late and…I mean, wouldn't your parents mind?"

"I don't think they'd mind," she told her honestly. "They're probably asleep right now so as long as we don't wake them up I can't see why they'd object."

"Still…"

"Fate. Really, it's okay. Trust me on this. If they met you right now, I'm sure they'd love you. But if it makes you feel any better, they leave pretty early in the morning to go to work so you probably wouldn't even get a chance to meet them."

That seemed to mollify her.

"Oh. I see…"

"Mhm."

"So… do they work late too?"

Nanoha met her eyes, a little surprised by the question.

"Sometimes... It really depends on the day I guess."

"I see. That must be kind of tough. It sounds like you don't get to see them too often."

Nanoha felt mixed feelings at the words. She knew Fate didn't mean anything by that – if anything, she was probably trying to be sympathetic, but all the same it touched a little too close to home for the girl.

"You know, you would think so, but it's actually not that bad. For instance, even though my dad is usually away for work, my mom really tries to be home in the evenings. And I still have my brother and sister, so it's not like I'm ever really lonely."

"Ah. Is that so?"

"Mm. I know we might not seem like it but I think we're all pretty close despite the circumstances."

She saw Fate smile, but somehow it didn't seem to reach her eyes. "I see. That's good; I'm glad to hear it."

"Yeah...Anyway, I don't know about you but I'm freezing! What do you say we go inside and warm up?"

As soon as they were both inside, Nanoha shut the door and re-set the alarm.

"Here, pass me your coat." She whispered. Fate did so, but immediately went to rub her bare arms.

"Cold?"

"Maybe just a little..."

By the way the girl was shivering, that was an understatement. It made Nanoha feel a little guilty about her earlier comment; after all, it was because of her hesitation that Fate was waiting outside for so long.

"Sorry about that. If you want, when we get to my room I can lend you one of my sweaters?"

Fate shook her head. "It's okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Once I warm up, I'll be fine."

"You know-" The question was on the tip of her tongue but for some reason the words wouldn't come out. "-um, the kitchen is around the corner, you know? I could maybe make you something warm to drink if you'd prefer that instead."

Again she shook her head. "I'm okay. But thanks for asking."

"Are you sure? Cause I'm pretty sure we have hot chocolate."

She saw the corners of Fate's mouth twitch upward. "It's tempting. But, really…I'm okay."

"If you say so…" They both stood there awkwardly. "A-Anyway, my room is over this way. Try to stay close – the furniture is kind of all over the place."

"Mm."

Fate followed Nanoha through the house until they made their way to an upstairs bedroom. Nanoha didn't think she had much in comparison to her friends. There was a queen bed in the far upper left corner, and a desk and a wall of bookshelves lining the wall across from it. Fate seemed to think differently and was eyeing the place with a curious eye.

Without saying a word, Nanoha made her way over to the bed and sat down beside it on the carpeted flooring. Making eye contact with her friend, she patted the spot beside her. Once Fate had sat down, Nanoha reached up behind them and pulled the blanket down over top of them. She heard the blonde yelp in surprise and had to stifle a giggle.

"Don't worry. It's not going to bite." She teased.

"But…"

"Since you wouldn't take the sweater, I had to resort to this. I can't have a guest catching a cold in my own home now, can I?"

Fate didn't say anything in response, but she did hug the edges of the blanket closer to her body.

If there was going to be time to talk things out, this would be it. Or so, that's what the blue-eyed girl had thought. But Fate was being unusually quiet. Another wave of anxiety rippled though her, but Nanoha decided to broach the subject anyway.

"You know, I was just thinking about what happened today." Fate's head whipped around to face her and her heart nearly stopped. Her eyes seemed so intense. They looked at her questioningly and, was that a trace of fear? "Sorry, I-I guess I shouldn't have brought it up." She didn't know why but she suddenly felt like she wanted to cry. "It's late, so you must be tired right? Why don't we talk about it tomorrow?"

Nanoha was about to get up when Fate suddenly grabbed her arm. "Wait!" Seeing her reaction the girl immediately let go, but in a much softer voice she said, "I'm sorry. It's just, I have a lot on my mind right now so, please_,_ can we just sit here like this for awhile longer?"

Hearing that subdued tone in her voice, Nanoha couldn't find it in herself to stay no.

"Sure."

Nanoha wasn't sure how long they had been sitting there, but before she knew it she felt exhaustion from the day beginning to catch up to her. It seemed that Fate was feeling it too; at some point she had pulled her knees to her chest and was now resting her forehead against them.

"Fate?"

She reached out hesitantly and was startled when she suddenly lifted her head.

"Oh. S-Sorry, I thought you might've fallen asleep."

"It's okay. To be honest, I am feeling a bit tired."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah…" Fate closed her eyes and breathed in and out several times before she spoke again. "Um, you know…I probably should've said this earlier but…Thanks, Nanoha."

Nanoha stared back, not quite understanding her words. As far as she knew she hadn't done anything particularly special.

"I mean, even with the way things are, you still came to see me. To be honest, I wasn't really sure if you would…"

Nanoha felt an uncomfortable clenching sensation in her chest at the words. "Well, we're friends aren't we? You said that you needed someone to talk to so why wouldn't I meet with you?"

Fate opened her mouth then promptly shut it. "I don't know," she shrugged. "It was late so, I thought maybe you had already gone to sleep."

"Oh."

That wasn't the answer she had been expecting, but she supposed it made sense. After all, under normal circumstances that would be true.

She heard Fate gasp. "My text didn't wake you up, did it?"

"Not at all. There were a few things that I had to do, so I was up anyway." She could already hear the questions forming in the blonde's mind, but that wasn't the point here. "But…even if that wasn't the case, I wouldn't have been angry y'know?"

"Huh?"

"Hmm…I guess what I'm saying is…If you ever need someone to talk to, you can call me whenever you want. Even if I'm asleep and you wake me up, it's okay. I promise I won't get mad."

Fate appeared momentarily lost for words. She then sighed. "Still…Even if you say that…"

Nanoha was puzzled by the disheartened response. It did occur to her that Fate wasn't being entirely upfront about things. She didn't know why that was, but this awkwardness between them, knowing that she was hiding something from her, was downright frustrating. How could she help her if she didn't know what the problem was? Or…could it be that Fate was trying to keep her distance because she was part of the problem?

"Fate, can I ask you a question? About what happened today at the movie theatre…Yuuno said you had to leave because you had an errand to do. Is that true?" Although she didn't say anything, the way the blonde stiffened at the question didn't escape the auburn-haired girl. "Everyone was worried about you, you know? He said you looked kind of upset when you left."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah..."

Even now she could see his worried expression as he told them the news, and how pained it became when Arisa had bluntly pointed out that it was probably his fault for chasing Fate away. But they knew that wasn't fair. Yuuno couldn't take all the blame. How could anyone have predicted that Fate would react that way?

"He wasn't really sure what to make of it," she continued. "But, to be honest, I think he's worried that he said something to upset you. He thinks you hate him now."

"It's not like that." Fate said tensely.

"Then what is it like?" The moment the words left her mouth she instantly regretted it. "I'm sorry…I didn't mean to raise my voice. To be honest, I guess I've been feeling kind of frustrated. You've been acting strange lately, and when Yuuno said you were upset, I got worried. I tried texting you to see if you were alright but when you didn't reply I didn't know what to think. It…probably sounds silly, but I was starting to think that you didn't want to be friends anymore."

"What?" Fate asked, incredulous. "No, that's not true! I just-! I'm sorry…!" Her voice finally broke.

Nanoha looked down and saw that one of the girl's hands was curled into a tight fist. Realizing what was happening, the auburn-haired teen reached out to it only to feel Fate grab her hand. Nanoha winced at the tight grip, but she didn't make any effort to pull away. While it did hurt, Fate was hurting a lot more.

"Sorry…I didn't mean to upset you," she whispered.

Fate shook her head. "It's not your fault. It's not like you were the one who ran off. I don't know," her breath hitched, "Maybe there's something wrong with me."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with you. It just sounds like you're going through a tough time, that's all."

If anything, Fate started to cry harder. Nanoha continued holding her hand, but at some point her grip tightened so suddenly that she was unable to catch the yelp before it escaped her mouth.

A heavy pause ensued as Fate quickly came back to her senses.

"Omigosh!" Fate released her hand in alarm. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay?"

"Mm, I'm okay. You just surprised me, is all," she said as she rubbed her sore hand. "Though, I have to admit…Fate really has a strong grip. I guess shovelling all that snow has really paid off," she joked, but Fate wasn't laughing.

"I'm really sorry…" she said again, looking a little glum.

"Really, don't worry about it. I know you didn't mean to do it."

As Nanoha got up to get a box of tissues she tried to collect her thoughts. She truly didn't begrudge Fate for what happened, but it had her wondering: What was Fate thinking about that caused her to grip her hand so tightly? She didn't know anymore. She thought she did, but her gut was telling her that there was something more to all this.

She was instantly reminded of the time before they became friends. Now that she thought about it, even back then the red-eyed girl always seemed to possess this sad air to her. It suddenly struck her. Despite all of those times that they sat on that bench together she never once asked 'why'.

"Here." She held the box out to her friend. Fate took it gratefully and proceeded to dab at her eyes and nose.

"Sorry, I seem to keep crying in the middle of a conversation," she said with forced cheer as Nanoha sat back down.

"It's fine. At least it's better than letting things bottle up, right?"

"I guess…"

Time elapsed in silence once more. However, the heavy tension that had been there earlier was gone.

"Hey, Nanoha…?"

"Hm?"

"I know I keep saying this, but I'm really sorry about before. Not about crying, but I'm sorry that I didn't reply to any of your texts or calls. It wasn't like I was purposely trying to ignore you or anything like that. It's just, I had a lot on my mind and I needed some time to think. I didn't mean to make you think that I didn't want to be friends with you anymore."

Nanoha blinked. "Oh. It's okay, don't worry about it-"

"It's not okay." Nanoha looked up upon hearing the tone in her voice and met her eyes. "Making you feel that way is not okay."

She was struck speechless. The words were very simple but the sincerity in her voice and eyes were as clear as day. Fate really meant it and knowing that, she was touched.

"You know, it makes me really happy to hear you say that. But I still shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

Fate looked away. "For the record, he wasn't lying you know?"

"Huh?"

"I admit that I was…a bit upset when I left. But it wasn't because of something he said. Not really. He was actually being really nice to me. He apologized for what he said during the car ride over."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah."

She knew Yuuno had mentioned it earlier, but hearing Fate reaffirm this cleared away any remaining doubts that she had. She was so relieved.

"So then, if you don't mind me asking… if what he said didn't bother you, why did you leave?"

"Well…I'd be lying if I said it didn't bother me. But it wasn't the only reason why I left."

"I don't understand. You aren't referring to the errand are you?"

"No. To be honest with you, there never was an errand."

Nanoha had somewhat expected that answer, but this time she didn't feel the least bit angry. Happy that Fate was finally opening up to her, she patiently waited for the girl to speak again.

"Do you remember when I told you that I had an older sister?" she finally said.

"Yeah. Her name was Alicia, right?"

"We usually get along pretty well, but today we had a big fight. Actually, all we did today was fight. I can't even remember the last time it happened."

"That sounds tough. If you don't mind me asking, what were you two fighting about?"

Fate looked uncomfortable at the question. She began to play with her hands on her lap.

"She- She wanted me to stop seeing you and everyone else."

"…What?"

"But, despite what she said, I think the real reason is because she's lonely."

Nanoha sat there, stunned. All she could focus on was Fate's sister telling her to stay away from them.

"Wait, hold on a sec. Sorry, but I don't understand…Why would she want you to stop seeing us?"

"I think… it's because we're different."

Her mind blanked. "Different…?" she repeated.

A guilty look crossed Fate's face. "Well, from different backgrounds I guess. She mentioned how your family was a lot richer than ours, and because of that I shouldn't trust you. I didn't agree so…"

"Oh…"

"Yeah. It happened right before I left home to meet up with you guys."

_So that's why she was late._

"Sorry. I didn't know."

"It's okay. I didn't tell you guys about it, so how could you have known?"

"Mm…"

"It's kind of embarrassing, I guess." She continued. "I mean, all this time, I never knew that...well, you know." As if she read her mind, she added, "Yuuno told me. He also said that your family owns the Midori-ya."

Nanoha felt like there was a lead brick sinking in her stomach. She had anticipated having a conversation about what happened on the car-ride but she didn't expect Yuuno to tell Fate about the Midori-ya as well.

"Sorry…I guess I should have told you," she said once she found her voice. "Are you angry?"

"Why would I be angry?"

"I don't know." She shrugged.

"Well, I'm not angry. But I am curious to know why you didn't say anything about it earlier."

Strange: that was the word that came to mind. Usually by now people would have flipped out about how great it was that her family was rich. She didn't think Fate was that kind of person, but sometimes it was just so hard to tell.

"In all honesty…? It's because I was happy with the way things were. It was really nice being able to have fun with someone without having to worry about wealth or status. I mean, don't get me wrong, I really like hanging out with Suzuka, Arisa, and Hayate, but…"

"You want something more?"

"Sounds kind of selfish doesn't it?"

"Not at all."

She sighed and pulled her knees to her chest. "It's not like I'm unhappy with the way things are – I'm happy that my parent's business is doing well, but sometimes I find it difficult to make friends because of it."

"You mean…"

"People who like me for me and not just my family's money."

Fate was quiet for a moment.

"I don't know…Money aside I can't see why anyone wouldn't like you. You're kind, smart, and pretty…"

"Flatterer."

"But you like snow, so you have some strange tastes."

Nanoha lightly smacked her arm. "You just had to go and ruin the mood, didn't you?"

Fate chuckled in agreement. Still, even if she hadn't meant it, the comment had really cheered her up. Her heart wouldn't stop racing.

"You know, when Alicia told me that you guys were well off and all that, I didn't think much of it at first. But when I thought about it more, I started to doubt myself."

"You doubted yourself? But why-" It clicked. "You mean, because of what Yuuno said?"

"Until then it didn't really sink in how different we were. I began to wonder if I could ever belong or whether I was just fooling myself. That's why I left. I know it was selfish; Arisa had bought the tickets ahead of time, so I figured that you guys were probably disappointed or angry with me."

"Is that why you thought I wouldn't meet with you?" Fate twitched. "Because you thought I was angry with you?"

"Honestly, I didn't know what to think. But I really did think you might be asleep too."

"Well, you were wrong." She declared and rolled onto her back. "Like I said Fate, we weren't angry with you. We were just worried." Upon second thought, she added, "I also wouldn't worry about the ticket. You can ask Arisa about it if you want, but she won't accept your money. Not because she thinks you're poor or anything like that, but when she says she's going to treat she means it. I doubt she would even take my money."

Fate seemed to relax upon hearing that. "Ah. Is that so?" She then smiled. "She can be really stubborn sometimes, hey?"

Nanoha giggled. "Yeah, but we all still love her. Just like we like you."

"Huh?"

"I know you said you were worried about fitting in because your family isn't rich, but don't be. You're fine the way you are. You're our friend, and that's all there is to it."

She saw Fate bring a hand up to her eyes. "Do you need another tissue?"

Fate turned her head away. "No."

_Now look whose being stubborn..._

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it's fine. I was just thinking about how silly I was being."

"Yeah, that's for sure. For a moment there, it almost sounded like you were making me out to be some kind of alien."

"I don't know…Not only do you love snow, but you're really horrible at video games and you love to study." She paused. "Are you sure you're not an alien?"

She shot her an indignant pout and Fate broke out into a giggling fit. Instead of making the effort to give a verbal response, Nanoha reached up and pulled Fate down beside her.

"You're such a jerk."

"I know. But at least I'm not an alien." The sound of her breathing slowed as she calmed down from her laughing fit. "You know, it's kind of comfy down here."

"Isn't it?"

"Mm."

In fact, it was so comfy that Nanoha would have been content if she fell asleep right then and there on the floor. Except she couldn't; there was still one nagging thought at the back of her mind.

"Fate?" The girl hummed in response. "I was just wondering but what did you mean when you said your sister was lonely?"

"It means just that. Do you remember when I mentioned that my parents are divorced?" Nanoha nodded. "Well, it's just me, my mom and Alicia now. We all used to be really close but after my parents separated everything sort of fell apart. My mom started working later hours at the office, so we didn't see her too much."

Nanoha felt the comment strike a chord within herself. Their situations weren't the same, but it now made sense why Fate seemed so interested when they were taking about her parents.

"But even if your mom works late, why can't you and Alicia spend time together?" she asked.

"Alicia is usually at the library and I spend a lot of my time at work. So you see that's one of the reasons why she's mad at me. When I do get time off…Well, you know."

"I see…"

She heard Fate sigh and shift beside her. "They're always arguing, you know? My mom and Alicia, I mean. Even over the smallest things. When that happens, I usually go to my room and listen to some music. But when that doesn't work I sometimes go to the park to try and clear my head."

_So that's why. _Nanoha thought. The situation didn't sound so good judging from the number of times she had seen Fate there.

"Usually they would argue and things would blow over by morning, but this time it was different. I've never seen them look so angry."

"Do you know what they were fighting about?"

Fate fell quiet for a moment.

"I think they were talking about the divorce, but I'm not really sure. Everything feels all jumbled up inside my head. I just remember feeling really angry. I ended up losing my temper and made everything worse."

"It's not your fault though. Seeing your family argue - that would make anyone upset."

"It wasn't so much that they were arguing, but the point is I didn't help. In any case, that was when Alicia said she was lonely. She said we never noticed how she felt and I guess she's right. It was there all along but I never noticed. It's really no wonder she's angry." She ran a hand through her long, blonde hair and Nanoha felt her heart tug at the desperation she saw in her beautiful red eyes. "Nanoha, she's the only sister I have. I want to make things right but I don't know what to do."

Going through a rough time seemed like an understatement now. Nanoha really did feel bad for Fate.

"Well…I don't know if this is possible but can you maybe reduce your work hours? That way you'd have more time to spend together and you won't be so tired all the time. Or do you need the money for something?"

"Well, that's the thing. I only got a job because of my mom. Since she picked up more hours to support my sister and me, I thought that if I worked and earned some money too then maybe she wouldn't have to work so hard. Maybe she'd be at home more... It didn't happen though. Even working this much…"

Nanoha was lost for words. This entire time Fate was working hard so that her family could be together again. She thought back to all of those times Fate was falling asleep when they hung out and the times she looked exhausted. It wasn't fair. Alicia was lonely, but Fate must have been lonely too.

"It's not your fault. You're already giving it everything you've got, so don't say was for nothing. I'm sure your mom appreciates everything you've done."

"Maybe…But you know, it would be nice. If I could cut back on my hours even just a little bit, I think it would definitely make things easier."

"I don't want to sound rude, but…if your family really needs the money then why isn't your sister helping out too?"

"Alicia wants to go to University, so she needs to study and keep her grades up. With any luck, she might be able to get a scholarship."

"What about you? What do you want to do?"

"…I don't know. I haven't really figured that out yet."

"Still…" Even if Fate hadn't decided on what she wanted to do yet why was Alicia the only one to receive that kind of treatment? "If you can't reduce your hours can you look for a job with more flexible hours?"

Fate smiled. "That's kind of funny. I was actually just thinking the same thing. I think…what I'll do is talk to my mom first. See what she says. If things don't work out, then I'll start looking for a new job. Of course, I don't think it will be easy but I can at least try right?"

Nanoha was impressed. She didn't think Fate would try to approach her mother about the subject. A thought then struck her; she wasn't sure how Fate would take to the suggestion but if she could help her even just a bit…

"If that's the case, if you want, I can ask my sister if they have any openings in town. I can't guarantee that the work hours will be any better, but I can still look into it if you'd like."

Fate stared back as if she was having a hard time believing what she was hearing. "You really mean it?"

"Yeah. I'd still have to ask, but I'm sure she'll listen."

"That's…amazing. Really, thank you!"

Nanoha felt her face flush at the comment. "It's nothing really." She was certain that her sister could find Fate a job but it wasn't like she was doing anything personally. Like many other things it was only possible because her family had money.

_That's why…She's the one who's amazing. You're really amazing, you know that?_

"Sorry? Did you say something?"

"What? N-No, nothing at all! Actually, I was just thinking. Why don't you ask Alicia to hang out with us sometime?"

Fate tilted her head and returned a curious look. "You don't think the others would mind?"

"Why would they?"

"Well, I mean…you know Arisa…"

"I wouldn't worry about it."

"You sure…?"

"Positive."

"Okay. Yeah, that's great! I'll be sure to talk to her about it. Well, that is, if she'll still talk to me."

"Well, give it a try and see what happens. That's all you can do, hey?"

"Yeah…" she said happily.

While the girl seemed to entertain the possibility Nanoha made a mental note to have a talk with Arisa later. Her gaze then landed on the clock on her bedside table. It was almost four a.m.

"Anyway, it seems to be getting really late. What do you say? Ready to call it a night?"

"Oh! Yeah, sorry about that. I guess we talked a lot longer than I thought."

"It's okay. As long as you're feeling better that's all that matters." Nanoha got up and went to the dresser. She pulled open one of the bottom drawers and pulled out a loose shirt and a pair of pajama pants. "Here, you can wear these."

"Huh?"

"Well, it'd uncomfortable sleeping in those clothes, wouldn't it?"

"Mm…I suppose so."

"There's a bathroom outside in the hallway, two doors down. You can change there if you want."

Fate muttered another word of thanks before leaving. By the time she got back, Nanoha was already changed and under the covers. Fate looked so confused.

"Um…Where should I?"

She gestured to the space beside her. "I thought we could share. Unless you don't want to?"

"Oh. Well, okay, sure." Fate said as she climbed into the bed. The moment she settled under the covers and her head hit the pillow she let out a small sigh of content. Nanoha giggled.

"Tired?"

"Mm…" Sleepy red eyes peered back at her. She looked really happy. "Really, thanks, Nanoha…"

"Silly. You don't have to thank me. Just remember that if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here, okay?"

"Mhmm…"

She soon heard soft breathing and smiled. Compared to the many expressions she had seen from the girl that day, the peaceful expression on the blonde's face definitely suited her best.

"Good night, Fate."

She pulled the covers up on her friend and soon slept too.

* * *

Morning came soon after.

After making a phone call, Nanoha ventured out to the front steps to where Fate was. The moment she opened the door a fresh, cool breeze hit her face. It was bright outside so she had to squint at first, but she quickly found the blonde a few feet away in the middle of a phone call. To her amusement, it wasn't too long before the girl let her arms drop to her sides and let out a small sigh.

"She's not picking up?"

Fate shook her head. "I think she turned her phone off."

"I see…So what are you going to do now?"

"Well," she said thoughtfully, "knowing her, she probably stayed over at a friend's place. But I think there's a chance that she might have gone home since my mom isn't usually around at this time, so I think I'll check there first."

Nanoha nodded in agreement. "Sounds like a plan to me. Like I said though, if you need anything, just call."

"Right. And you know…really, thanks. I really appreciate everything you've done."

"No worries. But be sure to let me know how it goes, kay?"

"Mm! Laters."

* * *

For awhile after that, Fate couldn't shake the happy feeling inside her chest. In comparison to the night before her entire body felt light; it was like a heavy weight had been lifted from her shoulders and she could breathe again. It wasn't to say she was looking forward to what was going to come next, but she felt like things were different this time. It wasn't just Chrono and Ami anymore. She had other people who cared about her, and more importantly she had found someone who she could really trust and turn to for help. Now if only she could convince Alicia to hear her out…

When she returned home she felt that familiar knotting sensation in her stomach start up again. Standing on the front steps, it looked like all of the curtains were closed and she couldn't hear any shouting. Fate took a deep breath, turned the door knob, and heard the door creak as she stepped inside. The first thing she noticed was that none of the lights were on – only the few beams of sunlight coming in through the windows lit the space.

"Alicia?" she called out.

She heard a creaking noise coming from the living room. It sounded like someone was on the couch.

"Alicia?-" She called louder, but the moment she rounded the corner she jumped back and yelped in surprise. The person sprawled out across the sofa was definitely not her sister. "Mom…?" She whispered in utter disbelief. Beside Precia Testarossa, on the coffee table, were empty bottles of various alcoholic beverages.

She rushed to her side.

"Mom? Mom! Wake up! Are you okay?" She shook the woman and felt a flood of relief when she got a grunt in response.

"Would you please stop shaking me? I'm awake," she said a little crossly and began to rub her temples.

"Ah. S-Sorry! I didn't mean to, I was – I was just worried…I thought that you…" Fate suddenly stopped, thinking that it would be unwise to finish that sentence.

Precia paused. She reluctantly opened her bleary eyes, wincing slightly in pain, before she looked up at her. Fate felt a shiver run down her spine. Her mother was one of the smartest people she knew. Though she had looked more run down and tired over the years, she always had this sharp focus in her eyes. But now, there was nothing there but tired resignation.

"Fate…?" she finally said.

"Yeah, mom. It's me."

The woman struggled up into an upright, sitting position. "Sorry. I must have fallen asleep." She winced again and a hand went to her head.

"Um, would you like me to get you a glass of water?"

"Please. Some Tylenol as well if you don't mind."

Fate retrieved the items and watched as her mother downed the drink. She seemed to be much more alert now, but in no happier mood.

"So…what happened to work?" Fate carefully asked.

"Called in sick."

The look of pure shock on her face must have been apparent, because her mom returned it with an 'I didn't really lie' look.

"Oh. I-I see…So, have you seen Alicia?"

Precia frowned. "You mean since last night? No, I haven't."

_Then she's probably at Chrono's. _

To say the least, things weren't going the way she had intended. She had been so focused on Alicia that she hadn't given much thought about what to say to her mother.

"Fate, about what happened yesterday," Precia started, and Fate stiffened on reflex. "I know it's a bit late, but will you listen to what I have to say?"

Though she was afraid of what she was about to hear, Fate nodded.

"After you both left, I sat down and thought about what happened. And after giving it some thought, I've come to the conclusion that I owe both you and your sister an apology." She paused, making direct eye contact with her. "Blaming everything on the divorce was a mistake."

Fate could hear her heartbeat. Mom never talked about dad.

"Instead of focusing on that, I should have been focusing on you girls. It's difficult to admit this but, I came to the realization that I know very little about either of you. I don't know who your friends are…I don't know what you do…I haven't gone to any of your school events in so long, it's really no wonder why you two hate me."

She looked absolutely miserable. Fate couldn't bear to see her mom like this. So she pushed her own insecurities aside, and went up to her and pulled her into a big hug. Her mom went as stiff as a board.

"I don't hate you…" she whispered. "I missed you though. And I think Alicia did too."

Fate let out a surprised yelp when her embrace was returned with bone crushing force. It was a bit uncomfortable but she didn't have much time to dwell on it because a peculiar sound caught her ears. Somewhere by her right shoulder she heard light sobs.

"Mom…?"

Not knowing what else to do, she continued to hold her and listened as the sobs began to subside.

"Thank you, I'm okay now." Precia said several minutes later as she finally released her. "Really, some mother I am…I'm the one who is supposed to be taking care of you and yet…"

Fate opened her mouth to say something but she stopped when Precia held up a hand.

"Please let me finish. I acknowledge that I haven't been a very good mother, but if you and your sister will give me another chance I would like to try and make things right. For starters, after giving it much consideration, I've decided that I will be cutting back on my hours in the office. That way, I can spend more time with you girls. I mean it this time."

"But…is that really okay?" She asked.

"I don't see why not. If they take issue with it I can always switch companies. I've had a few job offers."

"That's not…"

"Hm?"

"I-I meant…what about the money?" she trailed off, hoping she would understand.

"Oh." Precia's eyebrows shot up. "Actually, that was another thing that I was hoping to talk to you about." Then she did something unexpected; she gave her a warm smile. "Fate, I'm proud of you for what you've done, but I don't want you to be worrying about such things anymore."

"I don't understand…"

"We're okay money-wise. So whether you want to keep working or not is up to you, but if you do, from now on I want you to keep the money for yourself, alright? To be honest, I would be happier if you spent more time going out and enjoying yourself. You're going to be working your whole life anyway, and if all you do is work, you'll just make yourself miserable. You can take it from me on that…"

Fate couldn't believe what she was hearing. It was too surreal. Everything would have been perfect but what was this nagging feeling at the back of her mind?

_Alicia._

"What about Alicia?"

Precia's brow furrowed in thought.

"When your sister comes home I think we will need to have a talk. If you see her, could you pass that on for me?"

Fate was hesitant. "Are you still angry?"

"You mean angry enough to throw her out? No. You're both very important to me. I just think that we're long overdue for a talk, that's all. And knowing her, she's probably still upset with me. I doubt she would talk to me even if I phoned her."

"She turned off her phone."

"Oh…"

"But I think I know where she is."

"Really?"

"Yeah. In fact, I'll head over there now."

"Alright. I'll stay here and wait then. And…um, I guess I should clean this mess." Precia said as she eyed the pile of bottles.

"Kay, sounds good. See you later then!"

"Yup. Laters…"

* * *

Fate phoned ahead of time to give Chrono the heads up that she was coming over. Her suspicions ended up being correct. Alicia had stayed the night at the Harlaown household.

Chrono was there to meet her at the door when she arrived.

"I don't know about this, Fate." He said as he let her in. "She's not…well…Really in a talkative mood if you get what I mean."

"Yeah, I'm not really surprised. But at the very least, I have to try, right?"

Chrono shrugged. "She's in the guest room. I'll be around if you need me."

"Kay. Thanks Chrono."

"Don't mention it." He gave her a small pat on the shoulder and left her to it.

Fate found the guest room easily enough. From the way he had described her sister, she had almost expected to hear sobbing of some kind but strangely enough it was quiet. Fate opened the door and cautiously peered in. She found Alicia curled up on the corner of the bed, back against the wall. From the moment she stepped inside to the moment she closed the door, blood-shot red eyes were locked onto her every movement.

"Alicia?" Her face was stained with tears. Fate felt her heart go out to her. "I, um, I was just wondering how you were doing." When Alicia didn't respond, she switched to plan B. "Do you mind if I take a seat?"

Not expecting a reply anymore, Fate took a seat on a chair by the desk.

"You know, if you don't want to talk to me, I understand. But there was something that I wanted to tell you." She took a deep breath. "I wanted you to know that I thought about what you said. You asked me, what made my friends so special. Well…they're my friends. They care about me and I really like hanging out with them. It's a lot of fun. But I wouldn't say that they're more important to me than you. You're both important to me. So I'm sorry if I made you feel otherwise. I mean, you're my older sister. There's no way someone could replace you."

Alicia averted her gaze and took to staring at the floor.

"Oh, and guess what? I also got a new job. Nanoha's family owns a café in town and they're going to expand it. They were hiring people so I applied. Not only are the hours are more flexible, but I also decided that I'll work less from now on. That way, I'll be able to spend more time with everyone. Pretty cool, huh?"

Alicia's jaw dropped. Her expression screamed 'who-are-you-and-what-have-you-done-with-my-sister?!'.

"Yeah, I'm serious."

She coughed. "What, um, caused this change? What about mom?"

"Mom's cool with it."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. She said she was going to cut back on her work hours too."

Alicia rolled her eyes. "She always says that."

"Yeah, but I think she means it this time. She also said that she wanted to see you. You know, to talk?"

"I don't know Fate…" she sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"She said she wasn't angry."

"Are you sure about that? I mean, I said some pretty awful stuff. Not just to her, but you too."

"It's okay-"

"It's not okay." She sighed. "Sorry, didn't mean to snap. It's just, I don't know. I thought I knew what's what but maybe I'm just jealous after all."

Fate blinked. "About…?"

"I mean, even though we look alike we're totally different. Everyone seems to like you more. I bet even mom likes you more."

"What? Hold on a sec! Why would you say that? If anything, I bet she likes you more."

Alicia arched an eyebrow. "You're not really serious are you? Have you seen us together? All we ever do is fight."

"Yeah, but, still, you're really smart…You're all anyone ever really talks about. I mean, in comparison I'm kind of dumb."

Alicia snorted. "I doubt it has anything to do with genetics, Fate. Have you ever considered, just for a moment, that your grades are lower because you're always working? If you spent more time towards studying I'm sure you could do just as well."

Fate bit her lip. Well, when she put it that way…

"I guess?"

"That was a compliment." She grinned. "Sorry, I really side-tracked there. Anyway, I guess what I really meant to say is...that I'm sorry for saying all of those things to you. It wasn't really your fault, I know you're busy. I just had a lot of things going on and I sorta took it out on you… I shouldn't have. Do you think you could forgive me?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Even for the picture?"

Fate had to stop and think about that one. "Well, you might be able to persuade me if you replace the frame."

Her eyes widened in disbelief. "Really? You mean it?"

"And I'd also like to know the reason why you broke it too…"

"Ah…" Fate noticed Alicia cringe a little at that. "If you don't mind, can I give you an IOU on that?"

"Sure, I think I can live with that."

"Then you've got yourself a deal." She gave a content sigh and fell back onto the bed. The bright smile on her face was hard to miss. "To be honest, I'm really glad to see you. I feel a lot better." She admitted.

For some reason Fate was reminded of her situation with Nanoha earlier.

"Well, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm around you know?"

"Yeah, I know."

"Hey, Alicia…?"

"Hm?"

"Are you really not going to talk to mom?"

She was quiet for a moment. She then sat up.

"I guess I really should, huh? Chrono might not be happy if I bunked here indefinitely. You'll be coming too, right?" she asked as she went to grab her things. Fate had heard the uncertainty tone in her voice.

"Yeah, of course. Here, I'll help you."

After Alicia was changed they thanked Chrono and left for home. Fate felt grateful that she and Alicia were on good terms again. She didn't know what she would do if things hadn't worked out.

"Hey, I forgot to mention."

"Hm?"

"Would you be interested in meeting my friends sometime?"

"You mean, Nanoha and…"

"Yeah! I could introduce you to them if you'd like. I think they'd like you. What do you think?"

"Erm…Well, that's really nice of you Fate, but can I maybe think about it? There are a few things that I still need to take care of first."

"Oh. Oh, yeah, for sure. No worries. Just let me know if you're ever interested."

"…Yeah."

* * *

When they were almost home, Alicia's steps began to slow. Seeing her hesitation, Fate slipped her hand into hers. Alicia silently squeezed her hand in response.

"Mom, we're back." Fate called as they stepped inside the house.

True to her mother's word, she was waiting for them. Precia didn't say anything, but Fate immediately noticed the different air to her. The sharp, yet unreadable focus was back in her eyes. Only this time, they were trained on her twin beside her. Alicia returned the sharp look with a stubborn one of her own. For the longest time the two stood there and stared at one another.

Fate felt her stomach churn nervously at the rising tension in the room. She brought Alicia home because she trusted their mother. Surely she wouldn't go back on her word now? She was shaken out of her thoughts when she felt light trembling in her hand. That's right; she wasn't the only one who was scared. Not knowing what else to do, Fate gave her older sister's hand a reassuring squeeze. It had only been a split second, but suddenly, without warning, Alicia pulled out of her grip.

She watched as her sister walked up to the taller woman and came to a stop a few steps away from her. She heard the start of a word and strained to hear the rest.

"Mom…" Alicia struggled for the words briefly before finally saying, "…I'm sorry."

Anything else that she was about to say was cut off when Precia pulled her into a tight hug.

"What the _hell_ were you thinking? I was so worried!"

` Alicia blinked, but the tears were already falling from her eyes.

"Sorry…! I'm sorry!"

Fate continued to quietly watch the pair from the side. Any remaining anxiety she felt melted away and was replaced by exhaustion.

* * *

_Even though mom and Alicia still can't forgive him…I don't think it was dad who drove us apart. Instead of telling each other how we felt, we avoided each other and yelled at one another. Even though we're all that we have left, the only thing we managed to do was isolate ourselves. Myself included…_

* * *

She was snapped out of her thoughts when she saw her mom reach an arm out to her. Without any hesitation she leapt into the group hug and let out a laugh.

_I know it's not going to be perfect, but maybe now we can finally move forward._


	8. Clear Blue Skies

**Disclaimer:** I do not own MLGN. If I did I would be forced to stick to deadlines =p

* * *

After everything settled down Fate sent Nanoha a text message. She told her that she was fine and that she would like to meet up with her to talk about how things went. After going back and forth about when and where to meet they both eventually agreed to meet at the park. Their entire conversation seemed funny to her now because in the end it was Mother Nature who got the last say.

The bell chimed overhead as Fate entered the Midori-ya café. Its sound instantly drew the attention of her friend.

"Fate! Over here." Nanoha waved from the front counter. Fate approached the till and paused when she noticed that her friend was wearing the shop's work attire.

"Good morning." Nanoha greeted.

"Good morning," she greeted her back. Maybe it was because she sounded tired but she couldn't help but notice how her friend seemed to be quietly studying her. "Um, Nanoha, are you on shift right now? If this is a bad time I could always come back later."

"What? Oh no, we're still on. I was actually just about to get off."

"Yeah?"

"Mhm. Actually it hasn't been too busy today so I guess I could even get off now. I'll go tell Miyuki. Do you mind waiting for a bit?"

"Sure, no problem. I'll just be over here when you get out."

"Okay!"

As Nanoha went off to do her thing Fate took a seat at one of the booths. Every time she came here with Arisa and everyone else they always sat at this one. She didn't know why that was but it was almost like a habit now. Fate sighed and relaxed into the cushion. Even though she had been to the Midori-ya a number of times now, somehow, knowing that she was going to be working here soon made everything feel so different.

Someone approached the table and for a second she thought it was Nanoha. But when she saw who it was she quickly got to her feet.

"Good morning!" She greeted the older girl with a slight bow.

"Good morning," Miyuki returned cheerfully. "You know, I thought it was you but I wasn't sure."

"I'm sorry. I didn't see you…"

"Please, don't worry about it. I know I'm going to be your boss and all but there's no need for formality. Any friend of Nanoha's is a friend of mine."

The blonde relaxed a little at that but to be honest the idea of being casual with her boss sounded awkward.

"In any case, what brings you in today? I'm guessing it's not because you want to get a head start on work, hmm?"

"Well, no…I'm very grateful that you hired me but I'm here to see Nanoha today. Speaking of which, did you see her? I think she went to look for you."

"Oh, yes. She mentioned that she was going off shift. I was wondering about that but that's alright, I didn't realize she was having a friend over. She just went to change so she'll be at least a few more minutes."

"Mm…"

"You know for what it's worth, since you'll be working here I imagine the two of you will be spending a lot of time together."

"Yeah?"

"Uh huh!"

Fate would be lying if she said the possibility hadn't occurred to her. The only problem was even if they did work on same shift they probably wouldn't have any time to talk to one another. Still, that was okay. Just the thought of being able to see her friend surprisingly made her feel really happy.

"You see," Miyuki continued, "Nanoha only helps out from time to time, which is fine, but lately…" she trailed off. "Well, in any case, it seems like she's really taken a shine to you. So-! Since you'll be working here I'm thinking that she'll be around a lot more too." She suddenly leaned in uncomfortably close to Fate and whispered in a low voice, "It's pretty genius don't you think? I'm getting two workers for the price of one!" She pulled herself upright and gave the flabbergasted teen a strong clap to the shoulder. "I couldn't have done it without you! Keep up the good work cadet."

Happy feeling was gone. Her boss is _**evil**_.

"Oh, speak of the devil…" The older girl mused. "Anyway, it was nice speaking to you Fate. I guess I'll be seeing you later." She winked.

"Y-Yeah…"

Fate turned her attention to her friend. The girl had her winter coat draped over one of her arms and she was carrying a tray with two glasses in the other. Fate automatically went to take the tray from her.

"Thanks." She smiled.

"Don't worry about it."

They both sat down, and as Fate went to place the glasses on the table she heard Nanoha speak up again.

"Sooo, what was that about?"

"Sorry?"

"You and Miyuki. It looked like you guys were really getting along."

"Oh. Yeah, I-I guess we were."

"So what were you guys talking about?"

"Just…stuff. Like work."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Fate saw Miyuki give her a friendly wave from across the room. "She was…saying how glad she was that I was going to be working here soon and… that she was really looking forward to a two for one sale."

Nanoha arched an eyebrow. "A two for one sale? Well, she did mention something about going shopping earlier."

_You have no idea._

"Anyway, what about you? How has your day been so far?"

"It's been good. It's not usually too busy during this time of day, so…"

"That's good."

"Mm…Anyway, thanks for coming today. I know it was kind of last minute but I figured the park would be snowed in after the snowfall we got last night."

Fate nodded. "It probably is. Me and Alicia had to shovel the walk this morning and even though there were two of us it still took awhile."

Nanoha hesitated at that. "So you two made up?"

"Yeah."

"What about your mom?"

"I think we're okay."

"That's great! How did you do it?"

"Well…"

At first Fate wasn't sure where to start. But once she started talking, one thing led to the next and before she knew it she couldn't tell Nanoha everything fast enough. When she started to talk about the conversation she had with her mother she had to stop several of times and try regain her composure. It was during these moments that she was thankful that Nanoha didn't brush aside her feelings; being able to say what was on your mind and knowing that someone would listen to you, it was kind of liberating.

By the time she was finished her story there was a warm smile on her friend's face.

"That's great," she sighed in relief. "I'm so happy for you, Fate. Everything worked out."

"Yeah, me too. But to be honest with you, with the way things were at the time I was kind of expecting the worst. Even now everything feels kind of surreal."

"That's understandable. But when you think about it, your mom and your sister had time to think about things too."

"Yeah, I guess…"

"Look, if it bothers you that much I can pinch you if you want?" She slowly reached for her hand and the blonde quickly pulled away, nearly spilling her drink.

"Aha – thanks, but that's not necessary."

"Are you sure?"

"Yup."

She was beginning to think that "evil" ran in the family when she saw a distant look enter her friend's eyes.

"Nanoha?" The auburn-haired teen jumped a little, further piquing her curiosity. Fate chuckled. "What was that? Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah! Why wouldn't I be?"

She arched an eyebrow. Nanoha ducked her head before she turned to look out the window. Fate automatically tried to follow her gaze and see what had caught her attention. Despite the heavy snowfall there were still a number of people out. She then spotted a group of teenagers joking around in front of the stop across the street. In particular, the short-haired blonde boy amongst them bore a strong resemblance to someone they both knew.

"You know, I was wondering about something…"

"Yeah?"

"Yuuno said that he goes to a private school, right?"

Nanoha gave her a puzzled look. "Yeah, he does. What about it?"

"I was just wondering, but…did you ever consider going to a private school too?"

The girl tapped her mug in thought. "Actually, I did."

"You considered it?"

"No. I mean, I did go to a private school. It was only for elementary school though."

"So, why did you switch?"

"Well…when you get down to it, I guess it was because I met Hayate," she said with a fond smile on her face. As if she read her mind, Nanoha went on to explain. "You see, my mom was best friends with Suzuka and Arisa's mom, and Yuuno's dad knew my dad, so we've known each other practically since birth. But I actually didn't meet Hayate until around the start of grade 3."

"Really?"

"Yup."

"That's interesting. So how did the two of you meet?"

Nanoha laughed lightly at that. "It's a long story."

"I'm listening."

"Well…okay. Suzuka, Arisa and I were walking home together one day when Arisa suggested that we cut through the park. She always said it'd be faster but that was never the case."

"No?"

"No. It technically is a faster route but we'd always stop to play so…"

"Ah."

"Yeah. Anyway, like I was saying, predictably, when we got there Arisa made a beeline for the slides. She always liked those the best. But when she got there it looked like someone had already beaten her to it."

Fate could already feel a grin forming on her lips. "You mean…"

"Right, you guessed it! We didn't know it at the time but Hayate had a fear of heights. She was just sitting there so I guess she was trying to gather the courage to go down it."

Fate had to admit, the mental image of the brunette being too afraid to go down the slide was pretty amusing. It made her wonder if the girl still had the phobia today, but that would have to wait for another time.

"What happened next?"

"Well, you know Arisa."

"Mhm~"

"She lost her temper when Hayate kept stalling. So…she tried to push her down."

Fate blanched.

"Yeah…Hayate ended up grabbing Arisa on the way down so you can guess what happened next. They had a huge fight aaand… yeah, it was pretty crazy."

"I bet. So even back then you guys were violent."

"Hey. It only happened a few times, I swear. But after that, believe it or not, we all became the best of friends."

Becoming friends through violence – okay, that was a new one. Fate was suddenly glad that she was spared that initiation.

"I see. So you switched schools when you started junior high."

"Right."

"What about Arisa and Suzuka?"

"They switched as well. All of us except Yuuno went to public school after that."

"Oh." That sort of made sense? "How did your parents feel about that?"

"They weren't too happy about it at first. It took a bit of convincing," she admitted. "The thing is… I didn't want to switch just because I wanted hang out with Hayate more. It was a number of things."

"Like?"

"It's just - I don't know," She shrugged. "Other than being with Arisa and Suzuka, I felt like I didn't really fit in with everyone else at private school, y'know? I'm sorry. I can't explain it very well. It's just the way I feel."

"Do you…regret it?"

Her head shot up. "What? No! Why would you think that?"

"I-I don't know. You just seemed kind of down, so…"

"If I didn't go to public school then I wouldn't have met you."

"That's…true, but…"

Nanoha sighed. "It's just, when I decided to switch schools I think the one who took it the hardest was Yuuno."

"Yuuno did?"

"Yeah. He wanted to know why and then he kept trying to convince me to change my mind."

Fate was about to respond to that but someone interrupted her first.

"Sorry, I couldn't help but overhear, but did someone mention Yuuno?" Miyuki asked brightly. She was suspiciously aiming that sparkling smile at Nanoha, who didn't look so pleased with her sudden presence.

"No one did Miyuki. I think your hearing is going."

"Really now?" she tapped her chin. "But I could've sworn…"

"Actually, Fate and I were about to leave. Right, Fate?"

"What? We are?"

Nanoha got up and placed their glasses on the tray. Miyuki stepped back to let the girl through but instead Nanoha pushed the tray onto the older girl, surprisingly both Fate and Miyuki.

"Sorry, in a rush. You understand right?" she said sweetly.

"I-uh…" The confused girl stammered. But before she could get a coherent word in Nanoha made a break for it and left the shop, leaving Fate tripping over herself to catch up.

Fate was surprised at how fast the shorter girl was moving. She had gotten a block away when she finally caught up to her.

"Nanoha? Hey!" She reached out and grabbed the girl's arm. Nanoha finally stopped but the run had left them both out of breath. "Nanoha...What was that about?"

"She isn't following us, is she?"

Fate blinked. "Huh? You mean Miyuki?" She looked behind them but the older girl was nowhere in sight. "No, I don't think so. C'mon Nanoha, you're really starting to worry me. Why did you run away like that?"

"I wasn't running away." She said somewhat defensively. That really got to Fate.

"Are you…angry?"

She saw her shoulders slump a little. Nanoha turned around and looked at the direction they had come from before meeting her eye. "No, I'm not," she finally said. "I guess…I guess I'm feeling kind of frustrated but it's not like it's your fault. Sorry, I shouldn't have taken it out on you."

"If you don't mind me asking, was it because of something Miyuki said?"

"It's more like what she was about to say. It's kind of complicated," she said and began to walk again. With the sense of urgency gone, Fate easily stepped in stride with her. "We get along pretty well most of the time, but the moment Yuuno is brought up…"

"Yuuno?" It struck Fate as odd that they were talking about the boy so much today. She thought back to the way he had been eyeing her friend on previous occasions. Without thinking about it the words just came out. "Do you like him?"

Nanoha came to a dead halt, shocked. "What?"

"I mean, if you do that's cool. I promise won't tell anyone."

"No, that's not it at all! I definitely do not like him like that."

That hadn't been the reaction Fate had been expecting. She couldn't tell if Nanoha had meant it or whether she was just in denial.

"I mean, he's nice and all, and I do love him but not in that way."

"Oh. So then… what does your sister have to do with all this?"

"Because…" She sighed. Fate watched the girl shift the weight between her feet for a moment. "Actually, do you mind if we went somewhere else? I'd rather not talk about that here."

"I don't mind, but if you'd rather not talk about it-"

Nanoha shook her head. "It's not that. I'd just rather not do it here."

Fate could understand that. If it was something personal then talking about it in the middle of a crowded street may not be the best place.

"Okay. Where do you want to go?"

"There's a place that I have in mind, but we'd have to bus there. If you don't have time though, we can always try to find some place closer."

"No, it's fine. I don't need to be anywhere anytime soon. Let's go."

* * *

As they sat together in the warm bus, the soft vibrations began to lull Nanoha to sleep. She had been helping out at the café the last few days while big brother was away. That alone was tiring enough but worrying about Fate too had left her nerves high-strung. She didn't blame Fate for it of course, but once she heard that everything was okay it really hit her how exhausted she was.

Nanoha glanced up at the girl from the blonde's shoulder. It was strange. She had always known that Fate was taller than her, but this time she found herself _really_ noticing it. Her gaze dropped and it fell onto Fate's hand. Earlier when they were sitting in the café together, when she had reached out intending to pinch the other girl she had been reminded of the time when Fate asked to hold her hand. At the time it had been sudden and she didn't know what to think. But now?

"_Money aside I can't see why anyone wouldn't like you. You're kind, smart, and pretty…"_

Unconsciously, her hand started to move towards Fate's but at the last moment she stopped short. What on Earth was she thinking? Fate only wanted to hold hands with her because she was upset that one time, right? What if she thought it was weird?

"Nanoha, we're coming up to our stop."

Nanoha quickly pulled away and sat upright. She was confused when Fate suddenly looked worried.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

The auburn-haired girl was about to ask what she meant by that until she felt a stinging in her eyes. Feeling a mixture of shame and confusion she sniffed and hurriedly went to wipe away the impending tears.

"I'm fine. I'm just a bit tired, that's all."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. C'mon, we should get off. It's not much farther."

After they got off the bus she directed them onto a path that passed under two rows of trees. A long walkway instantly came into view. Nanoha ran on ahead, and when they reached the middle she turned to Fate and said,

"Well, this is it." She watched as the blonde gave the area an appraising look. "I know it might not look like much now, but in the summer I think you can get some of the best views from here. You can see the ocean, and if you look carefully you can even see a bit of the beach."

"Yeah, I can see that."

Nanoha leaned against the railing. "I know you give me a hard time about liking winter, but to be honest I'm really looking forward to this summer."

"Why's that?"

"Well, for starters there's no school." She saw Fate smile. "But seriously though…I enjoy going to the beach with everyone. We all go every year but with college coming up, who knows how much longer we'll be able to see each other like this. That's why…" She shook her head. "Hey, you should come with us when we go this year. We can all go together after exams."

Fate's expression softened. "Sure. Sounds like fun."

"We can go swimming together."

"Mm."

"Then maybe we can smash some watermelon."

"Ah, I'm really terrible at that."

"Really? That's kind of surprising."

"Don't judge me…"

After sharing a laugh, Nanoha set her sights on the ocean and the white landscape surrounding it. A cool wind blew against her face, making her suck in breath. At this rate they probably shouldn't stay out for too long.

"Anyway, you were wondering why I ran away earlier. In a way, I guess you were right. Maybe I was." Nanoha pushed herself off of the railing to meet Fate's eyes and Fate did the same. "To answer your question… the reason why Miyuki keeps mentioning Yuuno is because she thinks I should give him a chance."

"But you don't feel the same."

She nodded. "He's asked me out a few times, but I've always turned him down."

"If you don't like him then what's the point?"

"I know, but ever since we were little everyone thought we'd always end up together. He comes from a good family, he's polite, he's smart, and our dad's are best friends. He's… perfect. I guess Miyuki thinks that if I give him a chance he might be able to change my mind. I know she just wants me to be happy, but I really just see him as a friend, maybe even a brother, so… if things don't work out between us then that's all going to change."

"And you'd rather not risk it?"

"Basically."

"Well, it sounds like you've made up your mind. If that's the way you feel why don't you just tell Miyuki?"

"I have, but she thinks I'm being too hard on him."

Fate was silent for a moment. "This is just my opinion…but I think you should date who you want to date. Not because someone else tells you to."

It took a moment for her words to sink in, but when they did Nanoha realized that she was genuinely touched; it felt like all of her earlier frustration had been washed away.

"Though you know," Fate continued.

"Hm?"

"When you said it was complicated, I thought for a moment there that you were engaged to Yuuno or something like that."

"Pfft…As if." She laughed at that, but in the back of her mind she wouldn't have been surprised if her parents had considered the remote possibility. "So, what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Do you like anybody?"

Fate's expression went blank; it seems like she had caught her by surprise. Still, the seriousness that she had as she mulled over the question was undeniably cute.

"I don't think so?" she finally said.

"I see." Nanoha somehow felt relieved about that. She approached the other girl and held up her hand. "If that's the case then why don't we do this? When one of us has a crush, the first one we'll tell is the other. What do you say? Pinkie swear?"

Fate stared at her hand. A faint blush tinged her face as she also brought her hand up. "You're such a kid sometimes…but, deal."

They shook on it, making it official. The cold wind blew again, this time making Nanoha shiver.

"It's getting kind of cold, isn't it? Maybe we should call it a day." Fate suggested.

"Yeah. Good idea." More than anything she just wanted to go home right now and get some sleep.

As the two girls walked back to the bus stop, Nanoha's hand accidentally grazed Fate's. The blonde didn't seem to notice but the touch made Nanoha's mind go blank. Without thinking about it, she reached out and grasped the blonde's hand.

Fate stopped, looking momentarily confused. "What's wrong?"

Nanoha shook her head. "Nothing's wrong. I just felt like it," she shrugged, hoping she sounded casual. "Is it okay?"

Fate blushed and Nanoha was sure it wasn't from the cold. "Um, well…"

"You didn't seem to mind earlier," she reminded her.

A number of emotions played on the girl's face before it ended with a spark of realization. With that she turned as bright as a tomato. "That was – I mean, back then…There was a reason for that!"

"I'm listening."

"It's not because of anything weird," she stated first off. "It's just…When Alicia and I we were little, if one of us was ever upset we'd hold hands."

"Oh. I see." Everything suddenly made sense. "So when you're upset, you find it calming when someone holds your hand?"

"I-I guess…"

"Hey, it's nothing to be ashamed of. If it works for you, that's cool. But I have to admit, you sure don't seem all that calm right now."

If it was even possible, the blush on the girl's face darkened several shades of red. Nanoha knew she was being mean but this was turning out to be a lot more fun than she thought. This was a new side to the girl that she had never seen before.

"So, you don't mind?" she asked again. "I'm not your sister, you know?"

Fate paused at that. The tables were turned when she looked straight into her eyes and Nanoha saw something indescribable in them. She didn't know why, but it was making her heart race.

"I know that." Fate said. "It's fine."

She turned around and led the way. Though this time, Nanoha couldn't help the smile that came to her face when she felt Fate's hand squeeze hers in return.

* * *

Fate stepped into the house and let out a sigh of contentment as the warm air enveloped her. She sniffed when an unusual aroma caught her attention; it smelled like someone was cooking something. When she entered the kitchen she was surprised to see both her mother and sister at home. Precia was minding the stove while Alicia was sitting at the small table reading a book.

"Welcome home," Precia said

"Mm. I'm back. So, um…what's going on?"

"Mom's attempting to cook." Alicia calmly explained.

"Hey... If I remember right, you two loved my cooking."

"Yeah, well…" Alicia mumbled 'it's been awhile' under her breath, but only Fate caught it. "By the way, what's gotten you into a cheery mode?"

"Huh?"

"You have a stupid grin plastered all over your face. It's kind of disgusting."

"I-I do not! Look, nothing happened. I just met up with Nanoha and we talked for a bit. That's all."

"Nanoha?" Her mother asked. "Is this a friend of yours?"

"Yeah." She saw Alicia raise an eyebrow but the said blonde said nothing.

"You know, I've never seen you bring anyone over," Precia mused. "Why don't you invite her over sometime?"

"Oh. Well, I don't know. I could ask her, but she's usually pretty busy with school and work."

"She's working while doing school?"

"It's a family business."

"Ah, I see." The woman then looked to her other daughter. "Speaking of which, don't you have something to tell your sister?"

"Oh. Yeah…"

"What is it?"

"Well, you know that place you applied to and got a job with?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, I applied…and they hired me."

Fate wasn't sure if she was hearing right. She wasn't surprised that her sister was hired, but why on Earth would she apply?

"Congrats."

Alicia chuckled. "You don't have to look so surprised."

"Sorry, it's just…Why did you…?"

"Why did I apply? Well, why not? You said they had flexible hours, so I figured if you could do it I could do it too. Besides, I figure it'd look good on a resume and it wouldn't hurt to have some extra pocket change."

"And it would give you more time to be with Fate, hmm?" Precia chimed in.

"S-Shut up." The girl grumbled.

"Well, that would depend on what shifts we're assigned to. But it probably wouldn't hurt to ask if we could work together." Fate said. She noted how Alicia instantly perked up at that. At that moment she also noticed a small white bag on the table. "Hey, what's that?"

"Oh, this?" Alicia picked up the bag and handed it to her. "It's a movie that I bought. I thought we could maybe watch it together sometime."

Fate skimmed the back cover. It sounded a lot like the stuff she used to watch when she was a kid. Wow, that really brought back memories.

"It looks interesting, but…I thought you didn't like this kind of stuff."

"Well…I decided that I should broaden my horizons."

That sounded weak, even to Fate. "Well, if you're not busy want to watch it after dinner?"

Alicia brightened at that. "Yeah, for sure!"

"What's it about?" Precia asked.

"Well, it seems to be based off of a magical girl series…" Fate said.

"Magical girls, huh? I never really watched anime when I was your girls' age. Do you mind if I joined in?"

"Suit yourself," Alicia said.

"Oh! I almost forgot."

They watched as Precia went to check up on the soup. Both girls felt a jolt of anxiety pass through their bodies when they heard the woman exclaim, "I think it's done! Which one of you wants to give it a taste first?"

Fate and Alicia nervously eyed one another.

"Oh, don't be silly. You both should give it a try."

Alicia and Fate each grabbed a spoonful of the bubbly concoction and put it into their mouths at the same time. There was a silence that turned heavy when the horrid taste over-loaded their taste-buds.

"So? How is it?" Precia asked, not noticing their paling complexions.

"It's, well-" Fate struggled for words.

"I think you should try a different recipe," Alicia finished.

"What? Surely it can't be that bad!" Precia picked up a spoonful and tried a sip herself. The twins watched in fascinated amusement when the woman's face mirrored their own only moments before. "Well, it was a first attempt. With some practice I'm sure I'll get back into things." She said and placed the pot aside. "What do you girls say we order take-out today? What would you like?"

"Pizza." Alicia said. Precia gave her a stern look, but relented.

"Just this once…But you girls really should be eating better."

"Uh huh."

Not even a second later they heard Precia calling for one of them to come over and help her pick a place.

"Do you-?"

"Yeah, I'll do it…" Alicia sighed.

Alicia got up and left the room, leaving Fate alone. Alicia's book caught her eye, so she picked it up and began flipping through the pages.

Outside at the exact same time, the sound of camera lens whirled and zoomed out from the blonde girl.


End file.
